Following the Arrow

Ever have those moments where you feel like the world has aligned and rolled out a red carpet right in front of you with flashing light arrows indicating THIS WAY!!! That has been the entirety of my experiences in Denmark thus far. The oh too common “what am I doing with my life” early 20s crisis (or non-crisis) has passed, and I am eternally grateful!

Over a year ago I sat in a massive Social Psychology lecture taught by Ken Sheldon, listening to his spiel on studying happiness while he handed out assessment forms for us guinea pigs. Like all state psychology programs, the undergraduates serve as the measured population. Woop-de-do. However, that lecture was branded in my mind considering I witnessed the exact same presentation at that year’s Griffith’s Leadership conference. Being one to make meaningful connections out of mere happenstances in life, I took it as a sign and moseyed on over to his office disappointed to hear it was mainly a topic of research. At the time, I saw research as a dead end. The notion of sitting at a desk all day analyzing data in a windowless office was certainly not appealing. Observing my rather obvious disappointment, Ken Sheldon sent me to Joe Johnston who wound up serving as my academic/career mentor for the rest of my undergraduate years at MIZZOU. Again, I followed the arrow until Positive Psychology grew into my favorite conversation topic and passionate career path.

Why is this relevant? DIS has only solidified the fact that I am on the right track over and over again in a single week. Reading the first page of my Positive Psychology: Theory, Research and Applications textbook for my core course, I smiled knowingly at the APA citations for the field’s definition, “the aim to understand, test, discover, and promote factors that allow individuals and communities to thrive” (K. Sheldon et al., 2000). Checking out the references I found no less than 11 publications by my very own professor, more than Martin Seligman (father of Positive Psychology)! Five of Sheldon’s publications were partnered with none other than Sonja Lyubomirsky, author of The How of Happiness which also changed my mindset on life. Props to you, ol’ professor!

No, I am not naïve enough to believe my career path has been determined by mere recognition of a few research publications. The first day of my Positive Psychology practicum, our professor, Mads, insisted we stand up and mingle with those around us. Rather than introducing ourselves with where we are from or go to school in the States, we should explain what we are passionate about. Why? Because discussing your passion with another human automatically connects the two of you on a deeper level. Yes, my make-or-break question during sorority recruitment back home. Yes, the question that sparks my curiosity in understanding others lives. Mads then rambled through his personal bio about earning his Masters in Positive Psychology in London. LONDON. Why settle for Penn State next year? Not wasting a moment, I introduced myself explaining my situation as a senior abroad seeking a path for my next few educational years and I find it on my first day of class. He opened up opportunities to network with a few Biofeedback Heartmath firms here in Denmark in addition to clarifying I could earn my Masters in Positive Psychology here as well! As if that wasn’t enough, Mads is from the town my fellow MIZZOU Theta is currently studying abroad in Aarhus. Little signs lead to big ones!

Then Mads announced the option of being a class representative, who would meet with him periodically over free meals to discuss the successes and downfalls of our class’s progression throughout the semester. Opportunity to network and nerd of over psych? Heck yes, I’ll take it! Out of over 30 of us students, at least 20 wrote their names on little pieces of paper and two were picked at random. Indeed, my name was chosen. Before this week I was a skeptic on the Law of Attraction. Now I just may need to look into it a tad bit more…

Alice in Wonderland views arrows under her feet in the animated film, yet those are painted by the Cheshire Cat. I’m not sure if my kitty is God, fate, energy, or what… but thank you for all of these opportunities! May good things come forward! J

Forewarning: most of this blog shall be dedicated to why Denmark flourishes the most amongst European countries. How does their society thrive on a policy level? Why does it seem America fails to do so… or are we, really?

I simply cannot wait to see what opportunities this program brings, but I assure you, its one quality program my friends! 

Adventure before the Adventure

I firmly believe in the self-fulfilling prophecy. You should too.

For instance, before I actually carried out the process of applying to DIS I posted a googled image of the Copenhagen harbor. Every time I opened my laptop I looked at the destination I hoped and prayed I’d witness in person some day. Today I took my very own picture of the colorful historical harbor! For those of you who are not familiar with Denmark, Copenhagen literally translates to “merchant’s harbor.”

Now for a little backtracking actually related to the title:

I wanted an adventurous travel experience to Copenhagen. Thank you self-fulfilling prophecy, you taught be to be careful what sort of energetic vibes I send out into the universe because I CERTAINLY received my wish. When I arrived at St. Louis Lambert Airport I found out my initial flight to Dallas was delayed due to snow storms in Chicago (how that directly affected my flight I have yet to understand). I sat at the desk making small talk with the woman rescheduling my flight for about 30 minutes. I was blessed with a very pleasant woman with a son in the Marines so I commented on her pin supporting our troops informing her that I was an Air Force brat. Note to self: find a commonality with workers you need patience from. It works. Of course, small talk masked the lurching drop in my stomach aware that if I didn’t arrive in Copenhagen on time I would have to find my own means to my future home in an unknown city. She found me a hop over to Chicago and a direct flight to Copenhagen. Enjoying the relief, I looked at the situation as an opportunity to have lunch with my parents before leaving them for 4 months. Anyone would sacrifice more long hours exploring airports and endless people watching for a safe arrival to a cozy bed. Just my luck, I arrived to my gate in Chicago 5 hours early and joined 3 other DIS students. Little did I know the 3 DIS students quickly grew to at least 80 by the time we took off! 7 hours before I never imagined I’d land in Chicago and make friends before I even arrived. Things happen the way they were meant to. Always keep that in mind.

You never know what can happen while sitting in a plane for over 8 hours. I was crammed in the middle aisle between two middle aged men that certainly were not DIS students, let alone American. Luckily, the man to my left was a kind Norwegian named Bob. Small talks led to deep discussions about politics, mindsets about life, his career as a computer programmer with IBM in the 80’s to his fulfilling role as a loving father and husband.  Instead of spending the hours on my laptop like I anticipated, I actually slept between conversations with Bob!

He highly recommended reading The Island by Victoria Hislop and mixing honey and blue cheese atop bread.

Interestingly enough, when I asked about his career he automatically jumped to the values of IBM. The founder stressed the significance behind focusing on employees, customers, and stock holders. IBM sought to understand the valuable aspects of their employees’ lives through their spouses and family. Thus, the customer population would naturally grow through word of mouth and satisfaction of the product via employees. Stockholders would eventually give back to the company if value was embedded in the entire process of natural marketing. Brilliant, a company with value back in the 80’s. Show me more of that, America!

I also received cultural and historical lesions about the Scandinavian region from Bob. Apparently Norway is known for their salmon exports. Their staple foods include potatoes, cheese, and bread which are all my core comfort foods! Norway also employs fish sniffers who are actually paid to sniff fish with an expert nose determining freshness. More importantly, he gave me little tidbits about Copenhagen and the rest of Denmark. Denmark ruled Norway for a while in history, for example. He also informed me of a variety of ski methods, hunting birds and shooting guns as a hobby rather than killing living creatures. Bob also introduced the Scandinavian phrase “only bad clothes, not bad weather.” Danes repeated this phrase a few times the past few days!

The best part about conversing with Bob for hours on end was that he confirmed my gut instincts that I was heading to a cultural region with similar values to my own. We discussed how a good life should not be defined by a job but rather discovering meaning through relationships you gain through impacting their lives. His passions changed once he became a father. Bob’s facial expression changed when he spoke about his family and his love for them proved undeniable. With every negative topic we discussed, Bob brought up the positive aspect. As for the recurring theme in our conversation: balance. Beautiful application of positive psychology in everyday conversation!

The real surprise happened when I received an e-mail titled “43-E?” from no other than my new friend from Norway! He simply asked if he e-mailed the right person and assured him with hope he made it safely to his family at home. I was inquisitive about how he tracked me down and asked him his research method. I should have known a computer programmer could find me by a simple google search! He even print-screened images of the search [see below] and found me through this blog. Bob also stated:

“The world is a funny place - sometimes a witty, funny and enjoyable encounter make an imprint. Just wanted to give you a good hug when we separated at Copenhagen airport, but wisely controlled myself not to embarrass you :-) Therefore - you get a virtual hug now instead. Hope you don't feel offended. Take good care of yourself, enjoy Denmark, become a fantastic psychologist and stay vivid as you are now. The future is bright and thanks for the flight! Bob ;-)”

Scandanavians are big on smiley faces and don’t have any taboo meaning behind adding you on Facebook or e-mailing you. He was very sweet, made my day, and served as a reminder that there truly are kind people out there in the world!

Dreaming in Anticipation

Many young girls dream up a pretend life as a princess. They have pet unicorns and live in castles with secret passageways. A knight in shinning armor rescues them from an evil dragon, or they befriend the dragon and have the knight join in on a group picnic. While I've enjoyed the opportunity to babysit such "girlie girls" over the years, I always found myself amused but couldn't quite relate to their obsessions over the color pink or Barbie and Ken's wedding day.

Instead, I was the five year-old frolicking in our Virginia back woods. Soon after watching Pocahontas for the first time I often sang "Just around the River Bend,” pretending to talk with an imaginary hummingbird or listening in for advice from old willows.  I once promised myself I'd never be one of those 90's babies with a soft spot for a particular Disney princess... However, this animated version of the famous Native American historical figurehead made a significant impression early on (although I personally identify with Meg from Hercules... a story for another day). Pocahontas proved to be courageous during adventures, stood true to her convictions and followed her heart. Bravo to Disney for conveying a female role model who did not always swoon over prince charming while simultaneously illustrating a fairytale-like effect on U.S. History!

Side note: http://thoughtcatalog.com/2012/10-disney-princes-and-whether-or-not-you-should-marry-them/

Embracing my immense amount of curiosity and interest in the world as an avid traveler, my heart leads me to Denmark. Of course, venturing a bit off the beaten path with this lesser known country (no offense to Pocahontas and her British explorations), I too have been pulled by passion. My passions lie in the captivating concepts of positive psychology. The Danish Institute for Study Abroad [DIS] offers a practicum program covering this newer psychological field. Alas, rather than graduating early I shall close the University of Missouri chapter and roam where the Danes live!

As I wait in anticipation to scurry along with the “hurry up and wait” airport norm, I have come to the realization that Copenhagen may very well be the place I was meant to thrive! Trolling over Denmark.dk, I’m surprised my eyes haven’t permanently popped out of my skull. I’m simply fascinated over the fact that women are dominating the Danish pop music industry… girls manage stilettos while riding bikes all over the Copenhagen… a Dane invented the “RoboCluster” lawn mower which is controlled by a Nintendo Wii remote! Talk about geeking out over international enthrallment! I am officially sold!

My dream castle has transformed into a quaint brick building covered in ivy known as St. Kannikestræde 13. It shall house thirty-one DIS students, although I’m not positive if everyone is a part of the Culinary House program. Regardless, it shall be a piece of cake compared to a sorority house hosting seventy-seven. This holds especially true considering there are three social and residential advisors compared to one house mother (loved my experiences all the same). Yet, the areas surrounding my temporary home sound even better than the dwelling itself! The location of DIS is a mere five minute walk away (closer than half my classes at MIZZOU). The Copenhagen Jazzhouse shall satisfy my artistic cravings for an evening with my sketchpad, and it converts into a night club! Finally an ideal entertainment venue within walking distance! Little cafés trickle all over the surrounding streets up to the Kongens Have (The Kings Garden). This public park sits next door to the University of Copenhagen’s Botanical Garden as well! A Fitness DK stands ten minutes away with a small club fee with spinning classes so I can continue my exercise routine. While all these compelling attractions overwhelm me before I even arrive, I can’t forget the whole reason for pursuing the program: academics. In denial of my winter break coming to an end, I find relief knowing the Copenhagen public library is located RIGHT behind our house! Toodles, Columbia public library… I will miss you but it seems I am upgrading to a palace of countless knowledge in a foreign language. People watching may, of course, continue as a major distraction but at least I’ll remain ignorant of fellow book seekers’ conversations! If I get restless from researching psychology I can simply pop over to the museums near by…. the perks just keep coming! I am not even there yet!