Introduction

Areté in ancient Greek actually means something closer to "being the best you can be," or "reaching your highest human potential."
The term comes from Homeric times and often refers to Greek and Trojan heroes known not only for their bravery, but also for their personal effectiveness. The man or woman of Areté is a person of the highest effectiveness; they use all their faculties: strength, bravery and wit to achieve results.  In the Homeric world, then, the Arête person is a man or woman who faces life boldly – to realise his/ her full potential.

Drawing upon decades of psychological research, the programme draws extensively from Cognitive Psychology, and in particular, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT).  CBT is an established area of psychological interventions that recognises that people hold values and beliefs about themselves, the world and other people that may be inaccurate and inflexible.  Decades of research have demonstrated that the way people think can affect the way we respond to adversities.

By changing the way we perceive or interpret our emotions and events that happen to us, we can respond in a more stoic manner.  CBT is a goal-oriented, systematic, problem-solving approach to improving one’s mental attitude to life’s challenges.

Developed after 5 years of field-testing of different experiential approaches with over 4,000 youth participants, our programme has been designed for the Asian markets in particular.  It takes into account the values, aspirations and anxieties faced by Asian youth growing up in our fast paced and increasingly complex Asian societies.

One important area of concern within our predominantly test oriented Asian communities is the negative psychological impact tests wields on our youth.  Test Anxiety, and studies-induced depression afflicts students in virtually all Asian societies – leading to clinical depression and even suicide attempts.

A study of suicide trends among the young in Shanghai, Taiwan and Hong Kong (Reader’s Digest, 2003) shows a common denominator - an inability to cope with the pressures of their studies. Nearly 40 per cent of the teenagers polled in Shanghai and Taipei, and more than a fifth of those polled in Hong Kong, cited schoolwork pressures as the main reason leading them to entertain suicidal thoughts.

Even for students who may not be as severely afflicted as some others, Test Anxiety has still been found to significantly drive down performance unless managed with the appropriate cognitive skills.

Given the special role of test anxiety amongst our youth, the Areté programme is unique in being the first purpose designed resilience programme in its practical emphasis on fighting off Test Anxiety

Key Benefits

Improved Attitude - more positive mindset when in face of lives' challenges

Higher Motivation - greater desire to succeed in school and in life

Stronger Leadership - develop the courage to lead

Better Academic Performance - stronger mental resilience to bounce back when facing academic setbacks

Programme Content

Programme Outline

Module 1: Understanding Human Thoughts

  • Thoughts, Emotions and Behaviour
  • Negative Beliefs/Schemas
  • Automatic Negative Thoughts

Module 2: Developing Mental Strength

  • Understanding the Science of Resilience
  • Technique-5 : Five Techniques for enhancing resilience
  1. -ABCDE Model
  2. -Errors in Thinking
  3. -Thinking Styles
  4. -Vertical Arrow Procedure
  5. Countering

Module 3: Be Focused!

  • Intent and Focus (What martial artists know that we don't!)
  • Lifestream breathing

Module 4: Fighting off Test Anxiety

  • The Nature of Fears and Anxieties
  • Test Anxiety - Student's No.1 Enemy!
  • Strategies for fighting off Test Anxiety