Surveying thousands of people over 15 years, there are two attributes that make real leaders stand out.  This first is listening.  Why’s it such a rare and powerful practice among leaders?  What would it take to be one of those? Today, I spoke with a group of business leaders in Lisbon, and again, listening popped [...]

If you could deliver a brief message to half a million people people, what would you say? Facing this challenge helped me clarify the simplicity of how we can actually APPLY emotional intelligence to create positive change.

I am a recovering pessimist. For over thirty years, I have been practicing the skills of optimism.  It began with a traumatic divorce, which was wearing me to the ground.  In addition, I was very concerned about my ten-year son, who was depressed by the multiple tensions floating in the house.  Emotions were at an [...]

Teachers at every grade level increasingly view SEL as a critical component of their students’ education.    An important new national study by Civic Enterprises and Hart Research Associates, commissioned by the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning(CASEL) has revealed that teachers overwhelmingly recognize the value of SEL in improving academic scores, motivation, student relationships [...]

What do future change makers needs? While traditional “intelligence” is important, today success requires skills for being self-aware, collaborating with others, and creating new possibilities — in other words, emotional intelligence.

Upon leaving high school, I was five foot eight inches and 180 pounds.  People never described me as fat, but as large-boned or sturdy.  However, I was not happy with the way I looked and, really to me, it did not seem as if I devoured that much food.  I did have an intense sweet [...]