» Turn over a new leaf

… with emotional intelligence at work

Newsletter 63 : 1 january 2012

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Greetings
Welcome to our New Year’s newsletter. You’ve received it because either you requested it (extra thanks!) or Kay or Jeremy have met you on our travels.

We offer a change from other newsletters which do demand an awful lot of reading, and hope you will find it diverting. We aim to publish every two weeks, but sometimes the flesh is weak even as the spirit is willing.

Our video of the week

This week, Jeremy tells a powerful story of how a businessman had to let go of the obstacle he had put in his own way if he was to move forward. Do let us know what you think. (dur 4:28)

New Year resolution quotations of the week

Well worth thinking about…

If things are going to stay the same, there will have to be some changes around here

Giuseppe di Lampedusa, The leopard (1956)

Give us grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed,
courage to change the things which should be changed,
and the wisdom to distinguish the one from the other.

Reinhold Niebuhr, The serenity prayer

It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare,
it is because we do not dare that they are difficult

Seneca the younger, first century AD, letter to Lucilius

Emotional intelligence issue of the week

“I work in recruitment and the role I do is much the same as that of my colleagues in a fairly small team. I have recently become aware that my colleague and peer earns a base salary of £10,000 more than me… During my time of employment with this company – more than five years – I have consistently met my commercial objectives and am currently the highest fee earner in the business. From being fairly content with my salary and benefits, and assuming I was among the best rewarded because of my performance, I’ve become confused, disappointed and angry to discover this demotivating information…”

Before reading Jeremy Bullmore’s response, what would you do? What feelings does this raise for you?

Quotations of the week

Spoon feeding in the long run teaches us nothing but the shape of the spoon.

Live in fragments no longer, only connect!

Passion should believe itself irresistible. It should forget civility and consideration and all the other curses of a refined nature. Above all, it should never ask for leave where there is a right of way.

EM Forster, novelist and essayist, b 1 January 1879

EI article of the week

How long are you comfortable hugging someone? Apparently, humans are pretty consistent in becoming uncomfortable after a particular time, as this article describes. Extraordinarily, this duration is found in many basic physiological processes (such as breathing) as well as interpersonal exchanges.

Videos of the week

Two videos to help you in your New Year’s resolutions for your work. (What! You don’t have any?!)

(1) Why do people succeed? Is it because they’re smart? Or are they just lucky? Neither. Analyst Richard St John condenses years of interviews into 3 minutes 33 seconds on the real secrets of success.

(2) And, in this short talk, Arianna Huffington shares a small idea that can awaken much bigger ones (and she shares a few home truths). Maybe this could be your New Year’s resolution. (dur 4:11)

Incidentally, if you have difficulty watching videos at work, let us have your personal email address and we’ll send the newsletter there. Absolute confidentiality assured. We don’t pass email addresses to anyone.

Or, for TED videos, click on “Interactive transcript” to read the text.