It may seem like circumstances are holding you back right now. But psychologist Gay Hendricks thinks that most of us are self-sabotaging in ways we don’t even realize. One of the most common barriers to success, according to Hendricks, is something called the Upper Limit Problem (ULP). It’s a self-imposed, subconscious limit for how much […]
Does Viral News Cloud Your Judgment?
Staying on top of the news has become a matter of survival. Unfortunately, the news shapes not just our knowledge, but also our emotional states. Exposure to too many negative news stories—and that seems like most of them, these days—can therefore affect your ability to digest information properly and make good decisions. This means that […]
How to Fake It
The best way to acquire confidence is to act as though you already have it. Just fake it till you make it. Public speaking is akin to putting on an act for an audience, much as a theater performer will do in a play. Like an actor, a speaker can project confidence with body language […]
The Next New Thing
You don’t need to hire a consultant or stage a fancy brainstorming session. The best source of new business ideas is right in front of your eyes: your ordinary everyday routines. Take entrepreneur Kristina Guerrero. She wasn’t planning to start a business, much less get involved in the pet food industry. Her product idea, a […]
Negativity Isn’t All Bad
Your bad attitude serves an evolutionary purpose. No, it’s not just pessimism. Whenever you find yourself fixating on anxiety and fear, it’s likely because your brain is trying to keep you safe. Humans owe their survival as a species to highly evolved biological and psychological strategies. Case in point: the brain’s amygdala processes stimuli to help […]
Refresh Your Style
You probably know good style when you see it on the street. But can you recognize it on the page? Prose style is unique to each writer, and it’s a quality that only emerges with patience and practice. For that reason, style isn’t something you can learn by following specific steps or a uniform recipe. […]
Value People Over Profit
A business’s success is driven by two main currencies: resources and employee goodwill. With economies reeling from the effects of COVID-19, reduced resources are a challenge for many companies right now. But the good news is that high-quality leadership and a clearly defined mission tend to boost goodwill—which motivational speaker Simon Sinek believes is the most […]
Predict the Future
The famed statistician Nate Silver has his work cut out for him. 2020 has been a year of great upheaval and unrest, with uncertainty in the economy, in public health, and in the upcoming US presidential election. In The Signal and the Noise, Silver’s classic book about predictions, he offers an interesting piece of advice: don’t […]
Time to Get Creative
Do you need another hobby? With so many of us around the world stuck at home more than usual, more people are looking for new ways to tap into their artistic side. Creative projects like cooking, painting, or even learning to code can be a lot of fun—and often complement your professional skills in surprising […]
End on a Good Note
We’ve all been there. A lackluster Zoom meeting. A presentation that falls flat. A vacation that doesn’t go as planned. If you ever find yourself flopping, here’s a quick tip to salvage the situation: make sure to end on a positive note. The way in which an experience concludes helps to crystallize a good—or bad—memory. Often enough, […]
