Social Intelligence

The book explores how our brains are wired for altruism, compassion and rapport. Not all of the ideas are relevant to coaches, but there are several big pieces of research that begin to explain phenomena that coaches deal with every day. Here’s a few of the big findings:

● We really are all connected: the strongest emotion in a team can drive others in the team to resonate with the same emotion, without
anyone consciously knowing this is happening.
● Social issues are central to the brain: according to Matt Lieberman at UCLA, one of the key players in SCN, “three out of four activities whirring in the background when the brain is at rest involve mulling over our relationships with others”.
● Status is real: social rejection shows up in the same part of the brain as physical pain.
● We can’t think when we’re afraid: fear, concern about status and anxiety can impair the functioning of working memory.