About the Author

Meet the Author

Why he is an Advocate of Integrating Positive Psychology into Education?

His Professional Work

His Writing

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Meet the Author

 

Dr. Kristijan Musek Lešnik is a psychologist, university lecturer, researcher, speaker and long-time advocate of positive education. His journey began in a family of educators, where teaching had been passed down through generations.

Education runs in his veins not as an occupation but as a calling. It started more than a century ago, when his great-great-grandfather, worked to bring a school to the village so children could learn close to home. Today, Kristijan continues that legacy and a belief that shaping young minds is one of the most meaningful contributions a person can make as a a fifth-generation educator.

He is the Chair of the Positive Psychology Centre at the University of Primorska (Slovenia), where he teaches courses in general and positive psychology and works to bring research-based well-being practices into classrooms.

For more than 30 years, he has worked with teachers, school leaders, students, parents, educational institutions, and educational policy bodies to strengthen the role of well-being, optimism, resilience, and character in education.

In 2020, his long-standing work and expertise in education led to his appointment as President of the National Board of Experts on Education of the Republic of Slovenia, where he continues to contribute to educational policy and innovation.

Kristijan Musek Lešnik has written numerous books, textbooks, and workbooks for psychology and education, and has spoken at hundreds of conferences, trainings, and professional events — always with the same message: education is most powerful when it grows the whole human being.

He believes deeply in the work teachers do: in their courage, their creativity, their quiet influence, and their ability to shape the future in ways few professions can. He firmly believes that good teaching isn’t about being flawless. It’s about being human, being present, and helping young people discover who they can become.

GrowHumans is his way of giving back to the profession that shaped him — through science, experience, and the shared belief that every child deserves the chance to grow into a capable, caring, resilient human being.

 

Why he is an Advocate of Integrating Positive Psychology into Education?

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Kristijan Musek Lešnik writes about positive psychology because he believes deeply in its power to transform education. After more than 30 years of work as a psychologist, teacher, lecturer, researcher, and educational expert, he has seen one truth repeat itself in countless classrooms: children learn best when their well-being is supported, and teachers teach best when their work feels meaningful.

Positive psychology offers a research-based understanding of what helps people flourish — not only what reduces problems, but what builds strengths, resilience, motivation, curiosity, and connection. For Kristijan, these insights are too valuable to remain in academic journals or university lectures alone. They belong in classrooms, staff rooms, homes, and communities — wherever young people grow.

His work in positive education has shown that simple, science-informed practices can make a real difference in how students feel, behave, and learn. Through GrowHumans, he shares these ideas in a clear, practical, and human way, making psychological knowledge accessible to teachers, parents, and anyone looking to support children’s healthy development.

Kristijan writes because he believes that education should do more than transfer knowledge — it should cultivate optimism, meaning, character, and well-being.
He writes because teachers deserve tools that respect their professionalism.
And he writes because every child deserves a chance to flourish, not by accident, but through the support of caring and knowledgeable adults.

Ultimately, Kristijan writes about positive psychology for one simple reason:
it helps us grow better humans — and better societies.

 

His Professional Work

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Over the past 30 years, Kristijan has combined academic research, teaching, and public engagement.
His research and publications cover topics such as personality, motivation, child development, human values, and positive psychology, and he has contributed to numerous national and international projects exploring well-being, education, and personal growth.

He is also the founder and editor of:

• Abced.si, a Slovenian portal offering free educational materials and guidance for teachers to support children’s social and emotional development, 

• Brainscribed.com, a platform providing one of the largest international collections of activities for developing children’s graphomotor and visual-motor skills, and

• Aparenttly,com, the "Bringing common sense with a grain of salt back to parenting" website where where everyday parenting life meets psychology. 

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His Writing

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In addition to his scientific and educational work, Kristijan Musek Lešnik is the author or co-author of numerous publications for teachers, parents, and young readers.
His titles range from Self-Evaluation for Educational Institutions to Positive Psychology for Schools, Parents, and Kindergartens.

He also write fiction for young readers. His first two books in a series of Jan Pančur youth novels both received a Golden Pear Award for excellence in children’s literature in Slovenia. Since September 2024, his youth fiction stories have been published monthly in PIL, Slovenia’s oldest and most respected magazine for schoolchildren with a book also published in 2025.​​​​