Bright Thinking: Helping Children Build Optimistic, Resilient Minds with Dr Lyn Worsley

Our Bright Thinking Anxiety Group Program at The Resilience Centre brings together two powerful approaches to understanding and improving children’s thinking: Martin Seligman’s work on optimism and pessimism, and the solution‑focused practices developed by Steve de Shazer and Insoo Kim Berg. By blending these ideas, the program teaches children how to recognise pessimistic thinking patterns and shift toward more optimistic, helpful ways of seeing themselves and the world around them.

How did this Group Program Begin?

Bright Thinking was created by myself and a team of Psychologists at The Resilience Centre, over more than 20 years ago. It started as a simple, fun, solution‑focused program designed to support children experiencing anxiety—without ever talking directly about the “problem.”

The goals were clear from the start:

• Make the group program enjoyable and engaging for children
• Build practical thinking skills in the program
• Avoid focusing on worries or difficulties
• Focus on skills, as opposed to focusing on therapy

After running the program nearly 50 times, the results were striking to us. Our pre and post program data consistently demonstrated that there was:

• A significant reduction in anxiety
• A strong increase in social and personal competence
• and lasting improvements that were still present three months later.

An unexpected bonus emerged too: facilitators themselves reported becoming more optimistic after running the group program too. This insight led to a new idea—bring parents into the process so the whole family can grow together.

Why do Children Need this Approach?

Children grow up in a world that often emphasises problems, risks, and what might go wrong. For anxious children—who already tend to avoid difficulties and try hard to please others—this can intensify their worries. Research shows that anxious and depressed thinking patterns often mirror a pessimistic style. Seligman’s work highlights that pessimism and optimism are learned—and therefore, it makes sense that they can be changed. The solution‑focused approach supports this beautifully. Instead of analysing their problems, it helps children:

• Imagine how they want things to be ‘instead’
• Notice times when their preferred future is already happening
• Build on strengths, rather than dwell on difficulties

In our Bright Thinking Anxiety Group Program, children never discuss their worries directly. Instead, they place their worries in a private box at the start of the group program. This symbolic act frees them to focus on moments when their worries are less present—and on the skills that help those moments grow.

What do Children Learn with Us?

By the end of the group program, children have practiced key solution‑focused skills, including:

• The Miracle Question – imagining what life would look like if things suddenly improved and
• Scaling – identifying where they are now and what small steps could move them forward.

Each week, children practice these skills with one another, give and receive feedback, and learn to notice their own strengths and progress.

How do we Involve Parents?

Parents join the group in Week 1 (the first week) and and Week 6 (the last week):

• In Week 1, they help identify their child’s strengths and learn the basics of the solution‑focused approach.
• Each Week, parents receive a letter explaining what their child learned.
• In Week 6, the children teach their parents about optimistic and pessimistic thinking styles—an empowering moment for everyone involved.

This gives parents the chance to learn the same skills their children are practicing in the group program. This shared learning is essential. ‘The Resilience Doughnut’ model of resilience shows that children thrive when the key people around them activate helpful, supportive resources. When parents and children learn together, the whole system around the child becomes stronger.

Why Bright Thinking Actually Works

At its core, our Bright Thinking Anxiety Group Program is built on two simple beliefs:

1. People generally want things to be better and to ‘feel’ better.
2. People often stay stuck because they don’t yet have the skills to change their thinking.

By teaching children a—and their parents alongisde them too—practical, hopeful, future‑focused skills, the group program helps families shift from pessimistic patterns to more optimistic, resilient ways of thinking.

Dr Lyn Worsley – Director of The Resilience Centre