On Navigating Change and Transition

And one ought to consider that there’s nothing more difficult to pull off, chancier to succeed in, or more dangerous to manage, than the introduction of a new order of things. —Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince Spanish explorer Hernando Cortes came ashore with his men...

Self Reflection: Toward Mindfulness and Regulation

All of humanity’s problems stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone. —Blaise Pascal, Mid-17th Century French Philosopher and Mathematician A recent study in Science highlighted the challenge of self reflection, that my colleague, Blaise, articulated...

The Neuroeconomics of Time and Money

What you are, they once were. What they are, you will be. —The inscription on the Crypt of the Capuchin Monks at the Santa Marie della Concezione, a church at the top of the Spanish Steps in Rome Those few words capture how the past and future collapse upon the...

Correlation and Causality: Toward a Neuroscience of Reason

Don’t mistake activity with achievement. —John Wooden In his book, The Lexus and the Olive Tree, Thomas Friedman noted that no two countries with McDonald’s outlets had ever gone to war with each other (The Golden Arches Theory of Conflict Prevention). Yet...

Confident Is a State of Mind

Confidence, a state of mind, is more important than past accuracy or demonstrated expertise in earning trust. And, in repeated studies, it is a greater predictor of success than competence. Self-confidence is the sense that we can master something. A belief that we...