09. Combating Toxic Positivity

Toxic positivity is pretending that life only about happiness, and completely neglecting fear, sadness and grief from life. It's an approach that says: no matter how desperate or dire a situation, one should maintain a positive mindset. It's a "good vibes only" approach to life - criticised as being over generalised optimism, which  minimizes and denies any trace of emotion which isn't strictly happy or positive - limiting people's ability to get through such emotional states.

Today's conversation is with Kate Chojnacka - an ex-Googler who is incredibly passionate about all things related to human connection. She is a workshop-facilitator and has taught people from all walks of life about Toxic Positivity. 

Today she teaches us about the following:
1. What toxic positivity is
2. How to notice toxic positivity
3. How to be a better friend - to yourself, and to others

It's an important topic - especially during this pandemic, when many of us are feeling overwhelmed with fear, anxiety or sadness. Here we hope you can find comfort in allowing yourself to feel these emotions, and to live a bigger life as a result. Lean in and enjoy.