The Oomph Collective
I am so pleased to be able to share The Oomph Collective with you. Lauren (Reepham & District Community News) and I have combined forces to promote more of the positive moments in life, as an anti-dote to the negative moments. You can read all about it below (the article that featured in Reepham & Disctrict Community News March issue).
Introducing The Oomph Collective
When Reepham and District Community News was launched the premise behind it was to celebrate all that is great about living in this special part of the world. The aim was always to communicate positive news to the community because, let’s face it, we can all pin point the things on our lives which annoy us or impact on us negatively, but sometimes it can be hard to focus on what’s good and recognise it.
So, one Saturday morning at a ballet class (a ballet class for our children not us!) Sam a fabulous contributor to this magazine, and I found ourselves discussing the deluge of negative posts on social media we decided to put our heads together to come up with a way to promote finding the good things in our day and sharing them. The Ooomph Collective was born.
Sam explains the science behind the idea.
One of the challenges we face as humans is the fact that our brains are naturally wired to notice the negative things in our day to day living – possible threats, when things don’t go to plan, things that lead to discomfort and pain. From an evolutionary perspective this made sense – being attuned to things that could be a threat to our survival. However, we no longer need to be on constant watch for predators in the same way!
In a society that is constantly bombarded with stories of being busy, increased pressure and stress, we need to seek out the opportunities that can provide an anti-dote to these things. We need to intentionally pause and notice the things that can easily be rushed past, but can give a momentary relief to the stresses and strains of modern day living.
The great news is that you can combat this wiring. You can make a conscious, effort to change your focus and bring moments of interest, joy or awe into your everyday living.
Research shows us that by increasing these opportunities to experience positive emotions in your day to day living, you will reap the benefits physically and emotionally. People’s immunity improves, their cardiovascular health improves, their stress levels reduce, they have happier and more meaningful relationships, greater levels of creativity, and are more able to find solutions to problems they are facing.
The benefits don’t stop there. When you share these experiences with other people, they also benefit. Especially if you share stories of inspiration, kindness and awe. When you hear these stories you not only get the warm, fuzzy feelings but you experience a lift in your mood and feel more inspired. It can be like pressing a reset button to wipe out feelings of cynicism and negativity.
This is where The Oomph Collective was created.
The mission of The Oomph Collective is to encourage everyone to notice more of the things that can give a boost in your everyday experiences and share them with other people. We want to encourage and inspire you to notice the wonder of the things that are happening, that can become unnoticed and forgotten about when life gets busy or challenging. This isn’t about denying that life can be challenging, it is about acknowledging that and finding ways to build our capacity to deal with those times.
We are going to get out and about in the community and talk to you all about it, and we would love to share the content in the magazine, and across our social media.
What can I look out for?
To get you started we have put together a list of the 10 most commonly experienced positive emotions. Be curious and see which things you come across and then let us know about them!
- Joy
- Gratitude
- Contentment
- Interest
- Hope
- Pride
- Amusement
- Inspiration
- Awe
- Love
For example, has your child done something amazing? Lauren’s daughter completed her first ballet exam the other day which had her glowing with pride.
Lauren loves stepping away from her computer and walking in nature – she captured a gorgeous photo of the sun through the trees the other day, another great example of what we’d like you to share.
Sam’s son was in awe of the drawings and pieces of art that a member of staff at his school can create. It has inspired him to get creative.
Sam shared her feelings of gratitude for the days lengthening that allowed her to enjoy a bike ride at the end of the day.
The possibilities are endless.
How can I share it?
Post on social media using #theoomphcollective
Share to our facebook page
Tag us on Instagram
Or fill in the form below and pop it in the post box in The Bircham Centre, Reepham. You don’t have to include your name, but if you’d be happy for your comments to be used in this magazine contact details would be great.
We know that sometimes you might have something to share, but not have an image to use. Don’t worry – we have you covered! You can download images to use from our Pinterest Board
We can’t wait to hear your stories!
