In my work with leaders and teams, the first thing I address is emotional triggers. We all feel negative feelings from time to time, especially when we work with other human beings. Differences in personality, style, role, position, status, etc. can play a part in why we get emotionally upset by others. This is natural. Through self-awareness of what triggers you and why, you can begin to evoke different strategies to deal more effectively with them, thus becoming more of a master of your energy and a constructive force in the workplace. In pondering my work with others (and with myself as I am constantly practicing as well) I realize it is a possibility to fall into the blame game....

As most business leaders and managers know, organization culture is real, yet it is hard to put a finger on exactly what it is, and thus how to engender it in the workplace day to day. It has always been my premise that culture happens whether we are intentional about it or not, so why not be strategic about the practices that set the conditions for a positive, collaborative and innovative culture?...

We all experience adverse emotions from time to time, some more than others. Sometimes when others present us information that we don’t want to hear, such as feedback for our attitude or performance, we take it personally. What does it mean to take something personally? To me, whenever we feel offended, embarrassed, insulted, defensive or upset there is a reason behind the scenes that is motivating these emotions. Say, for instance your co-worker gives you some feedback about a process that you are following that isn’t quite right. When this person comes to you and delivers the feedback, you may feel ‘less than’ or even ‘the worst employee ever’....

Obligation is an interesting topic, those things that require us to show up and do them: pay the mortgage, go to work, take the kids to school, monogamy, paying bills, you get the gist. We all know well the ‘have to’s’ in life. These obligations can weigh on us, pressuring us, cause us stress. Does anyone want stress? I’m not talking about the stress (eustress) one feels before a performance or deep Crossfit workout, for instance. That’s a good kind of stress, helps you perform at your peak because you want to do those things.

This past month I undertook an experiment: To sufficiently and consistently manage my actions on the face of ‘negative’ triggered emotional states. I originally wanted to call it Zero Stress July, but upon further reflection I realized that I can’t necessarily control or foresee situations that may pop up that I might feel stress. Case in point: My only major reaction all month was to being stuck in traffic on the ride up to vacation in Maine. We got off the highway for lunch and in downtown Kittery and the traffic was gridlocked. Being on the road for two hours already and ready to have a break, I felt stressed and reacted by raising my voice, being judgmental, and getting short with my family. This all lasted for about 5 or 10 minutes, when I realized what was going on, that I was having a knee jerk reaction to something I couldn’t control....