What is Thrive?

Our International Women’s Day celebration took place on Thursday (March 5) and brought together colleagues, speakers, and members for an inspiring and thought-provoking afternoon focused on empowerment, allyship, and wellbeing. Loretta Lee of CA Support opened the event with a powerful reflection on the charity’s long-standing commitment to supporting members, students, and their families during times of crisis. She spoke about CA Support’s roots as a fund that once primarily assisted widows at a time when women’s roles were centred in the home, and how it has evolved over nearly a century to meet the complex realities people face today. Loretta highlighted the ongoing financial vulnerabilities that disproportionately affect women, unstable work patterns, economic dependence, relationship breakdowns, financial coercion, and the pressures of single-income households. Through her work, she has seen first-hand how these challenges impact women managing childcare costs, household bills, debt, and unforeseen hardships. If you would like to donate to CA Support to help its work, you can do so here. Our keynote speaker, Cara Sothern, guided attendees through the concept of living an intuitive, grounded life amidst busy schedules. She explained the role of the parasympathetic nervous system in stress regulation and led an energising session that encouraged participants to quite literally “shake out” stress. Through practical breathwork exercises, she demonstrated simple techniques to calm the body, enhance clarity, and support resilience, tools everyone can integrate into their daily routines. Our panel featured a wide range of members who shared insights on this year’s theme, “Give to Gain,” emphasising the power of giving back, building allyship, fostering mentorship, and elevating others. Our panel consisted of: Sarah Murphy, Distribution Services Leader at PWC and Chair of the Chartered Accountants Ireland Leinster Society Loretta Lee, Finance Director at Workday and Chair of CA Support Bernard Byrne, Chair of Balance for Better Business Sarah McAleese, Risk Consulting Manager at KPMG and a member of Chartered Accountants Ireland Inclusion and Diversity committee Aine Spellacy, Executive Director at EY and Council Member of Chartered Accountants Ireland Each panellist shared some honest reflections about their personal career journey and spoke about the women, male leaders, and colleagues who supported and encouraged them along the way. Key insights from the panel included: Be brave enough to ask for what you want—opportunities often begin with a single courageous step. Give back by helping others start their journey, set goals, and recognise their own potential. Seize every opportunity, especially early in your career, to build confidence and broaden your experience. Look out for emerging talent and use leadership positions to open doors for others. The panel reinforced that uplifting one another is essential to advancing equality and strengthening our community. Our fireside conversation with Meabh Cahill and Rosemary Keogh explored leadership through the lens of Rosemary's personal experience. Rosemary spoke candidly about her early career journey and her experience as a CEO. Some of her shared honest reflections included: the loneliness that can come with senior leadership, the challenge of finding female role models, early in her career, the importance of telling your story and recognising your own worth, And the practical ways she manages pressure—coaching, Pilates, and building a support network. A central theme emerged from the conversation was confidence grows when you own your value, understand who you are, and advocate for yourself. The chat also emphasised the power of events like this to foster connection, representation, and vulnerability among peers. Attendees were encouraged to ask for help, check in with one another, and embrace the grounding that the CA qualification provides: a platform from which you can pursue any direction you choose. You can see photos from the event here.

Have you ever had someone ask how you are doing and you are at a loss of how to answer or at a loss to how you are actually feeling. That blah, indifference to anything and everything type of feeling – you could be experiencing languishing. This not-so-new concept has become quite commonplace in the last few years and is a concept we are hearing more about. Here Thrive explains what languishing is and what we can do about it. What is languishing? There is a lot more to mental health than just being good or bad, it is a spectrum. In an attempt to create a deeper understanding of mental health, it can be categorised into four levels: Flourishing – peak mental health Good to moderate mental health Languishing – poor mental health Depression – experiencing a mental health condition Languishing is wrapped in the middle of the mental health continuum; it is the absence of mental wellness, a state of not being at your best but not at your worst either. First introduced by psychologist Corey Keyes in 2002, languishing, as Keyes describes it, is an emptiness and stagnation, constituting a life of quiet despair. It is a feeling of numbness, where you experience few strong emotions. It is a lack of engagement and apathy, a place where you simply remain in a state of neutrality. What Languishing looks like? Languishing is that ambivalent feeling as if life is something that happens, rather than something that you actively cultivate, participate in, and enjoy. Here are some of the feelings or experiences that can come with languishing: Feeling disconnected or dissociated Feeling deeply lonely or isolated A lack of motivation or procrastinating Struggling to focus Feeling like you’re not functioning to full capacity Inability to describe your feelings or experience any strong emotions A sense of emptiness or dullness Feeling as if you are just going through the motions, feel trapped or stuck Feel like life is missing something, there is nothing to look forward to Not thinking or particularly caring about the future Rarely have strong opinions In AXA’s 2023 global Mind Health study, it found a higher percentage of people (28%) were languishing compared to those who were flourishing (24%). The study also revealed woman experience languishing more than men at 30% compared to 25%. It also found Ireland had an above-average percentage of languishing at 29% compared to our global counterparts. Other research has shown a continued state of languishing can increase the risk of experiencing mental health conditions such as anxiety disorders and major depression down the line. What to do about it? In his work on flourishing, Dr. Martin Seligman concluded the best method to move from a state of languishing to flourishing is the PERMA model which stands for: Positive emotions This may sound like an obvious but difficult area to integrate into your daily life but by consciously experiencing positive emotions we can learn to improve our wellbeing. Positive emotions are a prime indicator of flourishing and have numerous benefits - improving our thinking, acting, and cognitive ability. Find ways to deliberately increase positive emotions in your life and if repeatedly exercised, these positive emotions will become noticed and automatic over time. Start small by practicing gratitude, writing down things you are grateful for, things you love, appreciate, and feel good about. Engagement Engagement refers to being fully immersed in a particular activity that consumes our attention in a positive way. This is often referred to as flow, it is living in and focusing entirely on the present moment and the task at hand. When we are in a state of flow we perform to our peak and experience less anxiety. Take a look at our recent article on how to find your flow state. Relationships Having positive relationships with understanding and respect yields a deep sense of connection and support. Investing time and energy into fostering close relationships enhances our resilience and wellbeing. Research has demonstrated that sharing good news, celebrating success, and responding enthusiastically to others increases intimacy, wellbeing and overall satisfaction. Meaning Meaning or purpose in life looks different for everyone but it is based on the things that bring your life value. Seligman discussed meaning as belonging or serving something greater than ourselves and helps us focus on what is important in life. If you are looking for meaning, try and engage in small activities at first that leave you feeling fulfilled afterwards – this could be anything from volunteering to a small random act of kindness. Accomplishments A sense of accomplishment is the result of working toward and reaching a goal you have set for yourself. Accomplishments can boost our morale by helping us feel productive, that we are moving forward, and can give us a huge sense of pride. Set small, challenging but realistic goals and check them off once completed – this can fuel our motivation, sense of achievement, and ultimately our happiness. If you feel as if you are in floundering in a state of languishing, the Thrive wellbeing team is professionally trained to offer wellbeing advice and support to help you on your journey to a thriving and flourishing life. You can contact the wellbeing team by email at: thrive@charteredaccountants.ie or by phone: (+353) 86 0243294.

Being ‘in the zone’ or feeling your Flow can help you revise more easily – and actually enjoy it more. Discover what a Flow state of mind is, the benefits, and how you can find yours. Have you ever been so engrossed in something that you don’t think about anything else and time seems to absolutely fly by? When ‘you’re in the zone?’ That’s your Flow. When you’re in this state of mind, your attention is 100% focused on the moment. And if that moment is when you’re revising for your exams, then you’re more likely to retain what you’re learning about.  In this article, we explore what Flow state is and how to find yours so you can optimise your revision performance.  what do we mean by Flow state?  According to the psychologist, Mihaly Csíkszentmihályi, who has carried out extensive research into Flow, it’s: ‘The holistic sensation people feel when they act with total involvement.’ Added to that is the fact people enjoy what they are doing at the time when they are in a state of Flow, which has been captured in this quote from one of Csíkszentmihályi’s research candidates: ‘My mind isn’t wandering. I am not thinking of something else. I am totally involved in what I am doing. My body feels good. I don’t seem to hear anything. The world seems to be cut off from me. I am less aware of myself and my problems.’  What are the benefits of Flow?   The advantages of feeling your Flow are reportedly widespread and span beyond making you enjoy certain activities. Benefits include: greater fulfilment - when you’re in a Flow state, you tend to enjoy what you’re doing more, which is a rewarding and fulfilling experience.   increased happiness - studies have linked Flow to greater levels of happiness and satisfaction.  enhanced intrinsic motivation - people are more inclined to embark on an activity for the fun or challenge of it rather than because they feel pressure or are going to be rewarded.  improved engagement - people who are in a Flow state feel fully involved in the tasks they are carrying out.  greater performance - researchers have found that Flow can enhance performance in a range of areas, including teaching, learning, creative arts and sports-related activities.  How to know if you’re feeling your Flow   According to Csíkszentmihályi, there are 10 common characteristics associated with Flow. You do not have to experience them all in order to be in a state of Flow.  Whether you’re revising or doing something else, you’ve found your Flow if you:  find what you are doing intrinsically rewarding  have clear goals that may be challenging, but are still achievable  are fully focused on what you are doing  feel in control over the situation and outcome  feel serene and aren’t fully conscious of what you are doing  are experiencing immediate feedback  find the task is achievable and there’s a balance between skill level and challenge  aren’t aware of your physical needs  are really concentrating and paying attention  lose track of time  How to find your Flow   Now that you’ve read about what Flow is, what the benefits are of feeling it, and how you can identify it, are you keen to know how to feel your Flow, so you can boost your revision performance?   Follow these 8 practical steps:  switch off your email notifications and mobile phone - and any other interruptions that will distract you from focusing on revising.  schedule time to do your revision - and let other people know you are doing it so they don’t disrupt your focus.  choose revision tasks that will stretch you - in a state of Flow, you should feel confident you have the skills to complete your task, but it should still provide an enjoyable level of challenge.  revise somewhere quiet - you may find it more difficult to become immersed in your revision if you’re surrounded by constant distractions and the temptation to get up and do other things.  be patient - it can take anywhere between 5 and 20 minutes for your Flow to kick in.  shift your mindset away from unhelpful thoughts - thinking ‘I can’t do this’ or ‘I’ll never remember this’ is counterproductive. Focus on how you learn best and try not to put too much pressure on yourself.  record your progress and stay on track - by ticking off your revision as you complete it. It’ll also help you feel more positive about it too.  take short breaks to stretch - rest your eyes and stay hydrated, but avoid engaging with other tasks that may disrupt your sense of Flow.  Four practical exercises for tapping into your Flow   These exercises can help you find your Flow too, whether you’re revising or at work:  exercise one:  When were you last working in a Flow state? Identify the specific details - what was the type of work, where were you working, who were you working with, did you have a deadline?  exercise two:  When you were last in a Flow state, as identified above, what skills were you using? Do you have time to do more challenging tasks that better match your skillset?  exercise three:  What practical steps can you take to set up the conditions for more Flow working?  exercise four:   What should you stop doing that prevents you from finding time to work in Flow?  While it may not be something you’ve really thought about until now, finding your Flow is incredibly useful, not just when it comes to revising for exams, but boosting your productivity at work too.  Article reproduced with the kind permission of CABA, the organisation providing lifelong support to ICAEW members, ACA students and their close family around the world.