“I get by with a little help from my friends.”
The Beatles (Songwriters and Musicians)
A tribe is a group who share interests and values and appreciate, care for, support and encourage each other. Being in a group of friends where you feel comfortable and feel you belong really can bring you a great deal of happiness.
Most people long to find their tribe
A really important psychologist called Maslow identified ‘the need to belong’ as one of the five basic human needs. He discovered that it is natural to want to be part of a group and to feel loved and accepted by others. Making an effort to make this happen and keep your tribe active and together will give you something very precious and make others happy too. Having a caring group you belong to helps make you resilient (strong) when life gets tough.
Have a think about all the places you might meet a group of people that you fit in with and feel comfortable with. This doesn’t need to just be school/work – this could be with your cousins, a religious community, a sports group – you probably belong to lots of ‘tribes’ without even realising it.
Have a think about the different groups you belong to. Write a list and give each tribe a different colour to show how vibrant and colourful your life can be.
Are you in more tribes than you thought? Where might you find some new ones? Is it time for a new list?
How it works
A Harvard study examining the lives of almost 3,000 people found that those who gather together to go out to dinner, holiday with friends, go to the cinema, attend sporting events, and belong to social groups actually live an average of two-and-a-half years longer than their unsociable peers. Finding your tribe is not only fun it can also help you live longer! Having a few tribes to belong to can also mean if you have trouble in one area of life then you have separate /other groups of friends to turn too. This will help support you and increase your sense of happiness in tough times.
Create your own happy by Being a really positive member of every tribe you are in and making sure to include everyone, arrange social events, say lovely things to and about each other and do your bit to make the group a happy one.
Have a look here for more ideas on how to create your own happy
