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No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without the written permission of the copyright holders.

© 1995 by Daniel Goleman. Introduction copyright © 2005. All rights reserved

© Translation into Russian, edition in Russian, design. LLC "Mann, Ivanov and Ferber", 2018

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Dedicated to Tara, the inexhaustible source of emotional wisdom

Aristotle's problem

Anyone can get angry - it's easy, but it's not so easy to be angry with someone who deserves it, and to a certain extent, at the right time, for the right purpose and in the right way.

Aristotle. Nicomachean ethics

It has been unbearably steamy since morning. It's been one of those hot, humid August days in New York City when everyone is disheartened by the feeling of discomfort. I was returning to the hotel. I got on a bus on Madison Avenue. And then he was shocked when he met the eyes of a middle-aged black driver who beamed with a joyful smile. He greeted me in a friendly way: “Great! How are you?" So he addressed everyone who came in. Everyone shuddered in surprise, but because of the weather and bad mood, few people answered the good-natured greeting.

Meanwhile, the bus, taxiing out of traffic jams, slowly crawled through the center of the afternoon city in a stream of cars, thick as always at this hour. And on the way to the sleeping area, a slow, downright magical transformation took place. The driver entertained us casually with a continuous monologue about everything in the world: there was something unimaginable going on in that store during the sale, and in this museum a wonderful exhibition opened. Have you heard anything about the new movie yet? It recently began showing in the cinema on the corner ... The excitement of the rich opportunities that New York provides to residents has infected passengers. Approaching their stop, everyone got rid of the gloomy sullenness, and when the driver shouted after him: “Bye! All the best!”, with a smile answered him the same.

The memory of the bus ride down Madison Avenue has been with me for almost twenty years. At the time, I had just completed my PhD in psychology; but in those days psychologists paid too little attention to the mechanism of such metamorphoses. Psychological science knew almost nothing about the origin of emotions. However, even then, imagining how the virus of goodwill swept through the city from the former passengers of that bus, I realized that the driver turned out to be something like a local peacemaker. It can be said, almost a magician - after all, he transformed the gloomy irritability that wandered in the souls of passengers, slightly softened their hearts, made them kinder.

Here are some reports from the weekly newspaper for comparison.

At one school, a nine-year-old student went on a rampage, sprayed paint over desks, computers and printers, and wrecked a car in the school parking lot.

The reason is that fellow third-graders called him a "sucker", and he set out to change their minds.

A chance encounter among a crowd of teenagers lounging outside a Manhattan club led to a brawl. Eight teenagers were injured. The fight ended with one of the offended men opening fire with a 38-caliber automatic pistol. The report states: in last years such shooting as a reaction to perceived disrespect is becoming more and more common throughout America.

According to press reports of murder victims under the age of twelve, 57 percent of murderers are parents, step-parents or step-mothers. In almost half of the cases, adults say they were "just trying to discipline the child." Beating to death is provoked by “violations” of the following kind: the child interferes with watching TV, cries, soils diapers, etc.

A German youth, a member of a neo-Nazi group, was tried for the murder of five Turkish women and girls: while they were sleeping, he started a fire. At the trial, he said that he was unable to keep his job, began to drink and blamed foreigners for his cruel fate. In a barely audible voice, he explained: “I never cease to deeply regret what I have done, I am infinitely ashamed.”

Every day the news flow brings such messages in abundance. People are becoming less and less able to get along with each other, and this threatens everyone's security. Base impulses attack us, causing an unbridled desire to destroy. This means that in our own life, in the lives of those around us, there is a large-scale release of emotions out of control. They cause a wave of destruction, which, of course, is sometimes followed by remorse. So what? After all, everyone's life is at risk.

The last decade has passed with a drumbeat of reports of a rapidly growing number of ridiculous antics, manifestations of recklessness and irresponsibility in families, communities and collectives. Before us are stories of outbursts of rage and despair of lonely children left by working parents in the care of the TV instead of a babysitter. Children suffering from being abandoned, left behind, abused or victims of promiscuous parents. Statistics show that mental illness is spreading more and more, that there are more and more cases of depression around the world. A wave of aggressiveness is rising: teenagers with firearms in schools, shootouts on freeways, brutal murders of former colleagues committed by employees who are unhappy with the dismissal. "Abuse of emotions", "shooting from cars on the roads", "post-traumatic stress"- over the past decade, all these expressions have entered the everyday lexicon. Now at the end of the conversation, instead of the encouraging "All the best!" we skeptically say: “Well, come on!”.

This book will help you find meaning in nonsense. As a psychologist and journalist for The New York Times - and yours truly has been in this capacity for the past ten years - I clearly see progress in the scientific understanding of the realm of the irrational. What strikes me most is the proximity of two apparently opposite tendencies. On the one hand, trouble in the emotional life of society is growing, on the other hand, some effective means of improving the current situation are emerging.

Why was this study needed?

So, in the last ten years, disappointing information has come from all sides. And then representatives of the scientific world began to seriously analyze emotions. Among the most impressive results is the study of the human brain in the process of functioning. They have become possible thanks to the latest developments in the field of optical imaging technology of brain regions. For the first time in the history of mankind, scientists have managed to see what has remained a secret behind seven seals for centuries. We begin to understand how, while we think and feel, build mental images and dream, this unimaginably complex system of a huge mass of cells works. An abundance of data in the field of neuroscience helps to better understand how the brain centers responsible for emotions make us angry or cry. Or how the most hidden parts of the brain, pushing to unleash wars or awaken love, direct energy to good or evil. Such research is unprecedented. They reveal the mechanisms of the violent manifestation of emotions and their weakening, and also show ways out of the collective emotional crisis.

By the way, I had to put off writing this book, waiting for the harvest of scientific research to ripen. The reason for such a long delay was rooted mainly in this: earlier researchers devoted surprisingly little space to the study of the role of feelings in the mental life of a person. Into the void thus created flooded a flood of self-help books of all kinds, replete with useful advice, developed at best from clinical research, but certainly without a serious scientific basis. Now, however, science is finally entitled to competently talk about the solution of urgent and very intricate problems of the psyche in its most irrational manifestations. This means, with greater or lesser accuracy, to map human feelings.

Such a map will refute the opinion of those who hold a narrow view of intelligence. They prove that the degree of mental development 1
The book will also often talk about intelligence quotient (IQ, Intelligence Quotient, literally translated "intelligence quotient"). The IQ test measures thinking ability (not erudition). Note. ed.

It is given to us genetically, and therefore cannot change under the influence of life experience. That our destiny is largely determined by the mental faculties with which we are endowed by nature. The argument is strong, but it does not remove the burning question: can we at least change something so that our children live better? What factors are triggered, for example, when people with a high IQ fail? Or when, on the contrary, those with modest abilities are found to be surprisingly successful?

Personally, I am determined to prove that the reason is most often what I call "emotional intelligence." Self-control, zeal and perseverance, as well as the ability to motivate one's actions - all this, as we will see later, can be taught to children. And thereby give them the opportunity to make the best use of the mental potential that has fallen in the genetic lottery.

In this context, our moral imperative is clearly visible. The times have come when the structure of society is spreading faster and faster. Selfishness, violence and spiritual squalor seem to destroy social well-being. That is why it is important to talk about emotional intelligence: thanks to it, feelings, character and internal moral stimuli turn out to be closely connected. It is becoming increasingly clear that fundamental ethical attitudes stem from their underlying emotional abilities. Impulse, for example, is a means of expressing emotions; the source of all impulses is the feeling expressed in action. For those who are in the power of impulses, that is, for people with insufficient self-control, a deviation from the strict principles of morality is characteristic (after all, the ability to control impulses is the basis of will and character). In addition, altruism stems from empathy - the ability to capture and decipher the emotions of other people. If there is no understanding of the need or despair of another person, then there is nothing to worry about. And if any moral attitudes are required in our time, it is these two: restraint and compassion.

Our trip

In this book, I serve as a guide on a scientific expedition to the land of emotions. Travel will help to understand some of the most difficult moments of our lives and the world around us. The purpose of the journey is to learn what it means to "bring intelligence to the world of emotions" and how to do it. Such an understanding in itself can, to a certain extent, be useful. After all, penetration into the field of feelings leads to the same result as in quantum physics: the observer changes the picture he sees.

Our journey begins with new discoveries about the emotional architecture of the brain. They explain the most discouraging moments in our lives, when feeling overwhelms all rationality. Much clarifies the understanding of how the brain structures that control attacks of rage or fear, passion and joy interact. We will learn exactly how the emotional habits that undermine our best intentions are established, as well as what we can do to suppress the most destructive emotional impulses that harm us. And most importantly, what the neuroscience data says is that there are “windows of opportunity” for the formation of emotional habits in our children.

We will make the next long stop on our journey at. There we will talk about how the characteristics of the nervous system of each person develop during life into a fundamental intuition called emotional intelligence. It allows, for example, to restrain an emotional outburst, to guess the innermost feelings of another person and to establish relationships - in general, as Aristotle said, to acquire a rare ability to “be angry with someone who deserves, and to certain limits, at the right time, with the right purpose and the right manner." (Readers who don't feel like going into neurological details can skip ahead to this section.)

Human beings are given the ability to live life. Among them, the main place is occupied by emotions - if, of course, the content of the concept of "being reasonable" is expanded. B considers some differences that are determined by "reasonableness". How does this ability help maintain the most meaningful relationships for us, and its absence leads to their destruction? How does the nature of the market, which is reshaping our working lives, motivate an emotionally intelligent person to succeed in the workplace? Why do "poisonous" emotions jeopardize our physical health no less than a pack of cigarettes a day? Why does emotional balance protect our health and well-being?

According to the laws of genetics, we inherit a certain set of emotional attitudes that determine our temperament. However, the emotion-related circuits of the brain's mesh formation are extremely easy to influence, which means that temperament is not at all something predetermined. In we will discuss how the emotional experiences we have during our childhood years at home and at school shape our emotional patterns, making us knowledgeable—or unskillful. This means that childhood and adolescence are windows of opportunity needed to solidify the essential emotional traits that will govern our lives.

Genre:

Description of the book: This book was created by one of the most famous American psychologists. He says that some people underestimate the role of emotions in life. But it is thanks to them that we are able to achieve success in many areas of our lives. This applies to family or even career. In this book, the author managed to explain what emotional intelligence is and what role it plays in our lives. Many people wonder about the differences between ordinary intelligence and emotional intelligence. And why people who have emotional intelligence achieve great success. The answers are in this book.

In these days of active fight against piracy, most of the books in our library have only brief fragments for review, including the book Emotional Intelligence. Why it might matter more than IQ. Thanks to this, you can understand whether you like this book and whether you should buy it in the future. Thus, you support the work of the writer Daniel Goleman by legally purchasing the book if you liked its summary.

It is far from a secret that it is possible to achieve success in work and life not only with a special mindset, hard work and professional skills, but also with a set of specific character traits, inner superiority and the art of managing other people.

It will be possible to change life for the better without possessing secret knowledge, it is enough to show initiative, faith in the best, adaptability and leadership. These qualities will help a person to prove himself as a person and survive in modern society. This conclusion was reached by the American psychologist, journalist and writer Daniel Goleman in his book Emotional Intelligence in Business.

Daniel Goleman was born in 1946 and is the author of over 10 books on education, psychology and management. He received awards and international recognition for his research in the field of psychology and achievements in journalism. "Emotional Intelligence in Business" was released in 1995 and immediately gained popularity in many countries around the world. The reason for writing was two articles that described the relationship between human intelligence and emotions.

Daniel Goleman by that time had the experience of a journalist and a doctorate in psychology, which he received from Harvard. The knowledge gained helped him in writing the work of life, on the topic that has not lost popularity so far about how to achieve success in work. The book found a huge number of readers and fans, it gained particular popularity in the business community.

After the book was published, Daniel Goleman began to receive feedback from people on the topic of personal achievement. All those who have achieved success in their work, without having the proper level of education, shared their impressions with him. The book helped to understand the reason for their victories, unlike other equally gifted, but not so lucky people.

The book consists of 5 parts at the core, which are based on 25 elements of emotional intelligence, with which you can succeed in your work.

• Ability to communicate.

Friendly relationships with the team, maintaining close friendships, leadership in decision-making. The ability to find an approach to people for the sake of further cooperation and achievement of the intended goals.

• Empathy.

The gift of attraction and the ability to show the art of managing and influencing people's opinions. Be able to read and respect the feelings of others, empathize with them.

• Motive.

Self-development to solve the tasks set in work, development in the nature of aspiration and perseverance. The ability to push past failures and losses into the background.

• Self control.

The ability to manage emotions, the ability to self-control, even after experienced emotional stress. Conscientiousness in work, respect for others and colleagues at work.

• Self-awareness.

Analysis of experienced feelings and emotions, the ability to use them in solving problems and achieving goals. Evaluation of your knowledge, potential, shortcomings.

Emotional intelligence helps to understand a person's ability to learn and use skills, consisting of the listed criteria. He points out how people transform abilities into practice at work and at home. Goleman also highlighted the idea of ​​creating companies with an emotional-intellectual basis.

Once a job could be obtained in accordance with the education and professional skills. Now this is not enough, they are considered only primary requirements when applying for a job.

The employer takes into account the personal qualities of the candidate, which will be decisive in the selection. Attention is paid to the character, emotional maturity, striving for improvement, communication skills of a potential candidate.

Emotional intelligence is necessary for the optimal operation of a company or organization, according to employers, so they try to increase its level in all possible ways. Goleman believes that the popularity of such intelligence in limiting the development of the company due to the large number of competitors in the creation of new products and services. Therefore, in a world of competitive products, only emotional intelligence can lift a company.

The book presents the results of tests conducted among 120 organizations. Employees described their professional abilities and character traits, which, in their opinion, helped them to succeed in their work. The study showed that 65% of people believe that the basis of their rise in their careers lies in their leadership and the art of managing people. The level of intelligence and professional knowledge are on a par with the behavioral skills of the employee, which are taken into account by the employer when raising the employee.

Criteria that employers want to see in subordinates:

• listening skills and the art of dialogue;
• the ability to adapt to the prevailing circumstances;
• the ability not to dwell on failures;
• be a confident, motivated person;
• be able to go to the goal, the desire to go to the promotion;
• be able to work in a team, find a language with people;
• show leadership, contribute to the development of the company.

Goleman is confident that emotional intelligence, when used correctly and appropriately, will help bring a person or company to a new level, reach unprecedented heights. People of different positions should bring benefits and benefits to others, contribute to the development of the company.

Scientists do work for people who dream of gaining popularity through their discoveries. Large corporations maintain a separate staff to maintain contact with consumers or potential customers, to help resolve issues. These employees, in addition to professional knowledge, are able to listen to people, guide, motivate and influence them to achieve their goals. This is the essence of their work.

Emotional intelligence is not just a pleasant communication and expression of feelings, but the ability to express them correctly and appropriately, worrying about failures, supporting in successes, collaborating, in every sense of the word, with other people.

A high level of intelligence and cognitive skills will always be valued in many areas of human activity. But, despite this, it has been established that obtaining the desired result depends on them only by 25%, and the remaining 75% goes to other factors. Therefore, leaders of public opinion, in addition to knowledge and intelligence, are also endowed with emotional and social competence, which distinguishes them from others.

Daniel Goleman noted the dependence of the position held on the level of emotional intelligence. Senior positions, according to Goleman, eventually lose the need to have technical skills. The following criteria are also of great importance for achieving the goal:

• Ability to think big.
• The ability to show leadership in a team, the art of influencing the opinions of others.
• Developed intuition. The people who hold the top positions in companies, according to research, are guided by their intuition in matters relating to work. They are able to operate with facts to prove their case and, on a subconscious level, convince the interlocutor to accept the conditions they need.
• Confidence in yourself and your actions. It will help convince others of the correctness of the decision.

In his book, Goleman recounts the stories of company executives who were fired or demoted. The author explained this by the lack of competence of people who have reached the maximum and cannot further develop due to a set of shortcomings, even despite a high IQ. Conducted research in the field of recruitment showed that the basis of such failures is stubbornness, lack of patience with changes and changes, unwillingness to communicate on an equal footing with the team, arrogance.

On the contrary, successful leadership is calm, adequate people, in whom leadership is manifested in everything, able to listen and listen to other people's opinions, spontaneous, friendly, responsive, able to save "face" in an unpleasant situation. The author considers emotional intelligence to be an acquired factor, not an innate one. People themselves are responsible for emotional and social development, it is always possible to improve and train the ability to express feelings and emotions.

Who is the book written for?

It is easy to read the book, it is useful for self-development, increasing personal knowledge and enriching professional communication. Useful for psychologists, company executives, businessmen. It will also appeal to students, teachers and those who are interested in psychology. Reading the book is useful for those who want to learn how to manage emotions, learn self-control, understand the feelings and emotions of other people, learn to find a common language with others.

Despite the fact that the book contains a lot of terms, it is not difficult to read it. The examples given from the life of the author and instructive stories from corporate life are interesting and entertaining to read. For those who do not like to read or do not have time for this, there is an audiobook "Emotional Intelligence".

The audiobook has the same content as the paper book. You can listen to it while traveling, or doing everyday activities. The book will help you change your idea of ​​work and your capabilities, teach corporate culture and proper behavior in a team.

If you want to manage others, learn to manage yourself.

This edition includes the leading ideas of Stephen Covey, Daniel Goleman, Edgar Schein, Kenneth Blanchard - those who have become recognized and undisputed leaders in matters of personal and professional growth....

• January 23, 2018, 15:40

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The experience of many people speaks of the benefits ...

• November 19, 2016, 14:20

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Have you ever wondered why every person strives for happiness, but only a few achieve it? Most of us understand happiness as success or endless pleasure, but success is always followed by failure, and joy is always followed by sadness. Life, as you know, is full of injustice, illness, grief and inevitably ends in death - is it even possible to be happy here? According to Buddhists, it is possible, but only here and now, and only if you jump off the emotional swing of success and failure. How do Buddhists manage to be aware of the hardships of life, yet be happy and maintain the famous Buddhist sense of humor? The Dalai Lama talks about this in a book co-authored with Daniel Goleman. In simple stories and dialogues, the Dalai Lama explains what we can do to establish harmony in our own lives and in the world around us, in order to change it for the better for ourselves and future...

• July 27, 2016, 14:00

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Harvard Business Review is the premier business magazine in the world. If you haven't read the other books in the HBR Top 10 Articles series, then read this one, in a way the most important one. For her, HBR's editors selected hundreds of articles from the magazine in which influential business experts talk about how to innovate in business management, about the role of a leader in times of painful change; what data will help to recognize customer needs and improve your product; what questions every good leader should ask himself and what he should do to ensure that subordinates are effective and motivated to achieve better results. In the book you will find extremely specific and practical answers to these and other important for a businessman...

• March 7, 2016, 12:00

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Harvard Business Review is the world's leading business magazine with a long history. Readers are invited to read ten of the best leadership articles in the history of the magazine from experts from leading business schools and practitioners.

How does a leader's personality and character affect leadership style? What management models exist and in what situations are they most effective? What are the main tasks of the head of the company in a changing economy and in a situation of stagnation? These and other important questions, the answers to which every professional leader should know, are discussed in detail by the authors of this...

• October 26, 2015, 12:00

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In the book "Focus. About attention, absent-mindedness and success in life ”psychologist and journalist Daniel Goleman offers an innovative look at the most valuable resource in our time, fraught with the secret of successful work and self-realization - attention. Combining advanced theoretical research with practical examples, the author examines the phenomenon of attention in various aspects, offering a serious and long overdue conversation about this little-studied and underestimated ability of our consciousness. In order to survive in today's world full of all sorts of distractions, the ability to sharpen your focus is essential, - convincingly shows ...

• March 21, 2014, 10:33 am

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Emotional Intelligence in Business” is a kind of continuation of the bestseller “Emotional Intelligence”: developing the theme of EQ – why in order to succeed, it is so important to have a set of competencies that determine the ability to manage one’s feelings – Goleman immerses the reader in everyday work. The book is full of amazing stories of triumphs and failures and compelling evidence of how the presence or absence of emotional intelligence determines the level of success.

What to do if EQ is not enough for career growth? Goleman sure: learn! He gives practical recommendations for developing emotional intelligence, and these chapters should not be missed by any manager or company leader.

Emotional Intelligence in Business may be the most important business book you...

But what is "emotional intelligence"? Can it be measured? What is the difference between "ordinary" intelligence and "emotional" and why the owners of the first often give way to the owners of the second under the sun?

Do you want to know the answers and learn how to deal with discouragement, anger, short temper, depression and become more successful? Read this book. It will be useful not only for students and teachers, but also ...

Every week H&F reads one business book and selects interesting passages from it. This time we read a book by American psychologist Daniel Goleman, dedicated to the problem of using emotional intelligence in business. In a 500-page work, Goleman proves that high intelligence and professional skills are not enough to be a truly good leader. To do this, you also need emotional intelligence, which helps you listen to your inner voice. We have selected some useful tips on how to develop it.

Emotional intelligence determines how much we are able to learn practical skills, which are based on five components: self-awareness, motivation, self-regulation, empathy and the art of maintaining relationships. Our emotional competence shows how fully we have converted this potential into the abilities needed at work. For example, the ability to serve customers well is an emotional competence based on empathy. In the same way, reliability is a competence based on self-regulation, or the ability to fully manage one's urges and emotions.

Emotional competence plays a particularly important role in leadership - a quality, the essence of which is the ability to get other people to do their job more effectively. The inability of leaders to maintain interpersonal relationships reduces the productivity of all group members. It leads to a waste of time, creates a conflict atmosphere, undermines motivation and commitment to work, provokes hostility and indifference.

A measure of the strength or weakness of the emotional competence of a leader is the degree of ability to maximize the talents of the people he leads. Mastering the situation associated with the manifestation of emotions requires the ability to resolve conflicts: the ability to quickly inspire confidence, reach mutual understanding, listen carefully, convincingly convince and persuade the interlocutor to accept advice. You need abilities such as self-awareness, understanding the point of view of other people, a sense of presence. And then at the negotiating table you will be exactly the person whom everyone is ready to trust.

Take a cue from the best

There are clear differences between successful leaders and unsuccessful ones.

self control: the insolvent did not cope well with difficult situations, easily succumbed to mood swings and were prone to outbursts of anger. The lucky ones, on the contrary, were in perfect control of themselves under any stress, remaining calm, self-confident and, moreover, reliable at the most critical moments.

obligatory: a group of insolvents reacted to criticism or failure by going on the defensive, starting to deny, get out or blame others. The successful took responsibility, acknowledged their own mistakes and failures, and took action to resolve the problems. They always went ahead, not dwelling on their mistakes.

Reliability: Losers tend to be overly ambitious and not shy about getting ahead at the expense of others. The fortunate ones were distinguished by exceptional honesty, showed vigilant concern for the needs of their subordinates and colleagues, and diligently took up the fulfillment of an urgent task. Moreover, they gave all this a clear preference, instead of impressing their boss in any way.

social skills: Losers lacked empathy and sensitivity, so they were more likely to be harsh or unceremonious, instilling fear in subordinates. And although, if necessary, they knew how to win over interlocutors, demonstrating concern for the affairs of others, it was obvious that charm for them was only a means to manipulate others. It was lucky not to take empathy and sensitivity, they showed tact and attention, plunging into the affairs of other people, whether they were bosses or subordinates.

Making connections and using the otherness of people as a means to an end: the insensitivity and manipulative demeanor of a group of misfits turned into an inability to create a reliable system of relationships of mutually beneficial cooperation. Lucky people, better understanding the value of otherness, are able to get along with a wide variety of people.

Develop your intuition

Heads of lending departments should anticipate a possible deterioration in business, even if the numbers are still in perfect order. Administrators must decide in advance whether new products are worth the time and expense required to develop them.

Managers need to be able to carefully consider the question of which of the candidates for a particular position, according to their temperament, will best fit into the working group. These types of situations require the ability to include in the decision-making process an intuitive sense in search of an answer to the question of what is right and what is not.

Successful leaders were honest, caring about the needs of their subordinates and colleagues.

Intuition and gut feeling testify to the ability to perceive signals emanating from the internal storehouse of emotional memory - the person's own source of wisdom and prudence. This ability is the true essence of self-consciousness. Emotional awareness begins with attuning to the flow of feelings that is constantly present in each of us. From that moment on, we recognize the ability of such emotions to shape what we perceive, what we think about and what we do.

This awareness helps us understand that our feelings affect those with whom we are dealing. It becomes clear to financial advisors that their own emotions in dealing with clients can be passed on to them, leading to better or worse results.

Postpone things

Our feelings are always with us, but we hardly listen to them. As a rule, we become aware of our emotions only when they build up and finally get out of control. But if we are attentive, we can feel them at more subtle levels long before they manifest with such force.

Emotions have their own program and schedule. But in our hectic life there is no place for them, no air time - and therefore they go underground. All this intense mental-psychic activity drowns out the quieter inner voice that suggests being guided by the resources of inner confidence that can keep us afloat in the ocean of life.

But self-awareness can be cultivated. Edward McCracken, former CEO of Silicon Graphics, said, “In our industry, it's very common that there is no time to think at all. You have to do all the preliminary work, and then you have to rely on intuition, not allowing the mind to interfere in this process. How did McCracken manage to learn how to use his intuition? He indulged in meditation on this daily for 10 years.

His approach can be called a time-honored way to hear your own inner voice - deeply hidden, barely perceptible: stop to "do nothing." Useful “doing nothing” is not a banal opportunity to evade work. This is a valuable ability to stop wasting time by wasting it, say, sitting in front of the TV or, even worse, doing some business with the accompaniment of a working TV. It is simply necessary to put aside for the time being all other types of purposeful activity and do what will open our consciousness for a deeper and calmer perception.

Learn to adapt

Many managers find it difficult to adapt to the new trend - the dispersion of responsibility and decision-making process for the organization as a whole. So if there's any competency in demand these days, it's certainly adaptability.

Champions in this field enjoy change and innovation. They are receptive to new information and may discard old ideas, thus adapting to how they proceed. They get along well with the feeling of anxiety that everything new or unknown often causes, and they are ready to take risks by switching to new methods of activity.

Adaptability requires flexibility in order to be able to take into account different points of view on a given situation. And flexibility, in turn, is directly related to emotional strength, that is, the ability to feel comfortable in the face of uncertainty and remain calm when faced with surprises. Another competence that underpins adaptability is self-confidence, and this conviction helps a person to quickly reconfigure their responses, throwing everything unconditionally into situations where reality changes.

Don't be afraid of adventure

The emotional stimulus of the innovator to action lies in the desire to find pleasure in novelty. People with such professional dexterity are able to quickly identify key tasks and simplify problems that sometimes seem extremely complex. They are able to find original connections and patterns that others usually do not pay attention to.

A lack of this competence can mean more than just a lack of imagination. People who feel uncomfortable with risk turn into critics and deniers. Cautious and defensive, they can constantly ridicule or undermine cutting-edge ideas.

in private enterprise, too much restraint portends failure

The creative mind is by nature slightly undisciplined. There is a natural tension between organized self-control and the drive to innovate. It’s not that creative people don’t have emotions at all ... No, it would be more correct to say that they willingly succumb to a variety of impulses and do more things than natures who are less prone to adventurism. After all, this is what creates new opportunities. Self-control in the sense of following the rules augurs well for large organizations, especially those that favor a bureaucratic approach to proper performance. But in the private sector or in creative professions like advertising, too much restraint portends failure.

Develop the skill of emotional presence

Being emotionally present at work, people are full of attention and completely absorbed in their work - and therefore they work sparing no effort. They fully realize their creative ideas, energy and intuitive ideas in the name of the common good. The people around perceive them as people available for dialogue and passionate about their work.

The opposite position - psychological absence - is only too well known in the case of those people who do their routine work mechanically, with obvious boredom, or in some way apart. In some sense, they, quite possibly, did not find themselves in their profession.

Presence requires a person to be "not incapacitated by anxiety, to be open, not closed off from others," explained William Kahn, a psychologist in the Department of Management at Boston University. Such a presence is the main attribute of the flow of inspiration: full attention or immersion in the task at hand.

On the contrary, the enemies of presence (and the flow of inspiration) are two of the same type of ailment - apathy and anxiety. Being fully present in this or that situation, we are more attuned to the people around us and to the demand of the moment, and therefore we easily adapt to these requirements, in other words, we get into the stream. We can be considerate, funny, or self-critical, freely using any ability or skill that we need at the moment.