The Neuroscience of Leadership

From Strategy & Business, comes The Neuroscience of Leadership.

David Rock and Jeffrey Schwartz write about breakthroughs in brain research explain how to make organizational transformation succeed.

These conclusions would have been considered counterintuitive or downright wrong only a few years ago. For example:

Change is pain. Organizational change is unexpectedly difficult because it provokes sensations of physiological discomfort.

Behaviorism doesn’t work. Change efforts based on incentive and threat (the carrot and the stick) rarely succeed in the long run.

Humanism is overrated. In practice, the conventional empathic approach of connection and persuasion doesn’t sufficiently engage people.

Focus is power. The act of paying attention creates chemical and physical changes in the brain.

Expectation shapes reality. People’s preconceptions have a significant impact on what they perceive.

Attention density shapes identity. Repeated, purposeful, and focused attention can lead to
long-lasting personal evolution.