Three good things journalling: kick off

Appreciative Inquiry is a positive, strengths-based approach to creating change which is becoming increasingly popular in health and care. 

If you’re looking for simple way to begin your Appreciative Inquiry journey, we’re offering the opportunity for you to flex your ​‘appreciative’ muscle with an experiment: three good things journaling. 

Positive Psychology research has shown that recording three good things for 21 days has a profound positive effect on your wellbeing and encourages an appreciative mindset. 

This quick kick-off meeting will offer a refresher on the simple instructions for our journaling. We’ll also outline the group sharing and learning session that will take place after the 21 days  which will give us all a chance to discuss our experiences.

Instructions

From today – and for the next 21 days – write down or doodle three good things that happen to you each day. They can be small: I helped a colleague answer a query; a friend appreciated something I did; I saw a beautiful sunset.

Against each of the positive events, write:

• Why did this good thing happen?
• What does it mean to me?
• How can I have more of it?

Just pick one question to consider if you are pushed for time.

Participation in the kick off is not compulsory if you want to get involved in the journalling experiment or come along to the sharing session. Just follow the instructions above and join our journey.

Join the follow up and sharing session

Join us on Tuesday 25 February to discuss your experiences and hear from others who have also taken part. 
 

Further reading

• Hodgkiss, Daniel, Quinney, Suzanne, Slack, Tim, Barnett Kayleigh and Howells, Brook (2024), Appreciating Health and Care: a practical appreciative inquiry resource for the Health and Social Care Sector.
• Quinney, Suzanne and Slack, Tim (2018), Three Good Things. Journalling and the power of Appreciative Inquiry: a practical resource book.

The Appreciative Inquiry online group is open to everyone; if you’re new to Appreciative Inquiry, already have some experience or are a seasoned professional. The group is led by an Advanced Inquiry Practitioner and co-author of Appreciating Health and Care.  The group aims to run sessions exploring the mindset of Appreciative Inquiry, as well as to ask questions with a generative approach to discussions.