Four insights

about the brain

David Rock,
CEO, NeuroLeadership Group

Executive Director, NeuroLeadership Institute

NeuroLeadership.Org NeuroLeadership.Com
 NeuroLeadership Institute
Annual summit Journal Certificate, Post-Graduate
(& ongoing knowledge sharing) Certificate & Masters Degrees

Informing leadership development, coaching, change management, learning.

Self-funding research and education.
Defining NeuroLeadership
The neuroscience of:
• Making decisions & solving problems

• Regulating emotions

• Collaborating with others

• Facilitating change
What we know

Areas of high
certainty

Areas with some research

Areas with no research

 Four insights

1.  The rational is overrated

2.  We ve got emotions backward

3.  Social issues are primary

4.  Attention changes the brain

 Needed for understanding, deciding, remembering, inhibiting

Working memory

Versus

Hardwiring
Minimal effort needed, massive capacity, parallel, hard to distract
Working memory limitations

Understand
Decide
Recall
Memorize
Inhibit
Most problems aren’t solved rationally

In the lab, 60% of problems are solved

in a way that people can t explain

The four faces of insight

1. Awareness 2. Reflection

4. Action 3. Insight Rock (2006)

The four faces of insight

2. Reflection

•  Quiet

•  Internally focused

•  Positive

•  Not trying to actively solve the problem

Jung Beeman (2006)
 Anxiety by Insight Interaction

35
30
Number Solved

25
20 Insight No.
15 Non Insight No.
10
5
0
Low STAI Medium STAI High STAI
Anxiety (defined by STAI)
 Positive Affect by Insight Interaction
40
35
Number Solved

30
25
20 Noninsight
15
Insight
10
5
0
Low PA-NA Middle PA-NA High PA-NA

Positive Affect (defined by PA-NA)

 Respect attention

6,000 workers were asked

where they do their best thinking.

10% said at work .

39% said at home .
59% said first thing in the morning.
 Let s discuss further

What does this explain that you already do?

What does this suggest you might do differently?

 Four insights

1.  The rational is overrated

2.  We ve got emotions backward

3.  Social issues are primary

4.  Attention changes the brain

The skittish limbic system
The brain’s organizing principle

Away Toward
Threat Reward
Uncertainty Interest

Problem focus Solution focus

Avoid Approach

Tunnel vision Global view

Disengage Engage
Bad is stronger than good

Away Toward

Reward

Threat

Rock (2008)
Threat responses
• Increase motor functioning

• Reduce field of view

• Reduce working memory

• Significantly reduce insights

• Reduce ideas for actions

• Create more threat responses

How we get it wrong"
 Emotional regulation

Situation Attention
Arousal

• Expression
Selection Deployment
• Suppression
• Cognitive change

Time
Emotional
Engagement
 Emotional regulation

Same or more arousal

Suppression Bad memory
Others uncomfortable

Less arousal
Cognitive change No change to memory
No affect on others
Put on the brakes
Emotional regulation

Labeling

We predict it will make things worse

Actually reduces arousal

 Emotional regulation

Reappraisal

Needed for strong emotional hits

Involves changing your appraisal of events

Suppression Reappraisal
Optimism

Environmental
Mastery

Positive
Relationships

Life
Satisfaction
- 50 + 50

Gross  (2005)  
 Let s discuss further

What does this explain that you already do?

What does this suggest you might do differently?

 Four insights

1.  The rational is overrated

2.  We ve got emotions backward

3.  Social issues are primary

4.  Attention changes the brain

 The deeply social brain

Our best and worst moments are social

Collective intelligence is more social than IQ based

Positive social traits trump bad health habits

Heavy drinkers outlive non drinkers

The deeply social brain

Social pain = physical pain

The deeply social brain

Away Toward

Threat Reward
Status
Certainty
Autonomy
Relatedness
Fairness
Rock (2008)
Offsetting & multiplying

Away Toward

Threat Reward
Status
Certainty
Autonomy
Relatedness
Fairness
Rock (2008)
 What SCARF affects
Perception
Cognition
Memory
Social cognition
Working memory
Immune function
Collaboration
Facilitating change
 Social intelligence

Self & social

awareness

Level of
Importance
Technical
skills

Capacity for
self & social
awareness

Individual Line manager Manager of managers Executive

 Let s discuss further

What does SCARF explain that you already do?

What does this suggest you might do differently?

 Four insights

1.  The rational is overrated

2.  We ve got emotions backward

3.  Social issues are primary

4.  Attention changes the brain

Strategy+business,
Summer 2006
Attention changes the brain

Attention density:
Quality and quantity of attention
 The biggest insight…?

Know your brain = ability to label experiences

Language for experience = integrated brain

Integrated brain = maximally adaptive

 Resources
Books:
Quiet Leadership - David Rock (Collins, 2006)
Coaching with the Brain in Mind - Rock & Page (Wiley, July 2009)
Your Brain at Work - David Rock (Harper Business, October 2009)

Web:
NeuroLeadership.org - summit, graduate certificate, journal
NeuroLeadership.com - brain-based coaching programs
DavidRock.net - blog, interviews, audio, articles, research

Contact: david@neuroleadership.com Twitter: davidrock101

 Upcoming events

Maximize Your Brain: January 31 - 6 webinars over 12 weeks

Certificate in the Foundations of NeuroLeadership: 12th February

Post Graduate Certificate in NeuroLeadership: March

Quiet Leadership: 29th February: 6 telecalls

HIVE: March 20th: 4 telecalls

Brain-Based Coach Certification:

Washington D.C.: March 22nd Singapore March: 8th
New Zealand: March 15th Sydney: , March 29th