Onward!

As you may know, I've been in school for the last year pursing my Master's in Leadership in Character Education. For one of my classes this semester we've been reading Primal Leadership: Learning to Lead with Emotional Intelligence (which I highly recommend by the way) by Daniel Goleman, Richard Boyatzis, and Annie McKee. In chapter 7, "The Motivation to Change," the authors are writing about the mental processes behind pursuing new dreams, changing old habits, and the obstacles we may face:

 

"In fact, the very act of contemplating change can fill people with worries about perceived obstacles. Sometimes after people have experienced that initial feeling of excitement about their ideal futures, they immediately lose it again, frustrated because they aren't already living that dream today. That's when remembering the brain's role in feeling can help... it's the activation of the left prefrontal cortex that gives us a motivating hope, by letting us imagine how great we'll feel the day we reach the goal of our ideal. That's what spurs us on, despite obstacles. Conversely, if we fixate on what's in our way-- rather than on the powerful image of our ideal life-- we presumably activate the right prefrontal area and are plunged into a pessimistic view that demotivates us and can actually

hinder our success" (Goleman, Boyatzis, & McKee, 2002, p.117).

 

I find this simply fascinating and so incredibly encouraging. I absolutely love that we have a choice in this. As a person who tends to continually try to figure out what could go wrong so I can avoid the potential pitfalls, this was a light bulb switching on moment. I literally may be doing more harm than good by focusing on all of the potential catastrophes rather than just pausing and responding appropriately if and when a situation comes up. So I'm going to work on this. I'm going to take more purposeful steps to achieve my goals, but I'm going to focus more on the positive, the dream, and the potential and let my left prefrontal cortex drive me forward.

What have you been telling yourself can't happen? Maybe it's time to change your internal dialogue too...


Source: Goleman, D., Boyatzis, R. & McKee, A. (2002). Primal leadership: Learning to lead with emotional intelligence. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.