We live in unsettled times. More bluntly, people are more consistently pi$$ed off than they used to be. We’re polarized; a third of us are suddenly vindicated and complacent, another third are apoplectic about the state of the republic, and who the hell knows about the other third – the ...
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People who have been wronged or mistreated need to hear an acknowledgement of that injury before they will ever likely be willing to move on to bigger or other conversations. A century and a half after the fact, one enormous wrong began being righted on a warm, wind-swept desert day ...
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There’s a human trait that all of us have to some degree, with the exception of people with antisocial personality disorder – socio- and psychopaths – but we don’t often recognize that it’s a trait that needs to be nurtured and developed. Empathy is embedded in us and one of ...
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Research done for several of the past years has shown a general demise in empathy. There’s no clear answer to why, but it may have something to do with the adage that says, hurt people hurt people, and a lot of people feel hurt. We’ve had a few moments ...
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I expect you too were hooked on watching the Olympics the past few weeks. Focusing on the best of humanity for a couple of weeks helps make up for some of the worst of our angels during the other fifty. It makes me optimistic for the future where, I believe, ...
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We teach classes to help clients and other students understand and deal with public and stakeholder anger, emotion and opposition. Developing better emotional intelligence makes a world of difference in accomplishing things that matter. And it’s not just about them, it’s also about you and me. Emotional intelligence means understanding ...
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I was talking with one of our more experienced clients on the east coast the other day. She told me they’re encountering a consistent challenge with new hires, smart people often fresh out of school, who are really uncomfortable talking with folks beyond their own age bracket and out of ...
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There’s a common belief that people in Western societies are becoming increasingly polarized, folding into moral tribes. But there’s significant evidence to suggest that we may be less polarized than we’re sometimes encouraged to believe. There are those who stand to gain power and income by convincing us we’re widely ...
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Dealing with the level of public conflict and abject hate that we all enjoy in the U.S. these days is no easy task; in fact, with true zealots, it feels impossible. How can you influence people’s supposedly irrational beliefs and behavior when how they feel is so visceral, so engrained ...
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