Test Anxiety? Try a Power Pose
When Frank Herbert wrote “Fear is the mind-killer” in the sci-fi epic Dune, he might have been thinking of academic performance. Research suggests that stress is so powerful that it can actually shrink the brain. Of course, outstanding test preparation instills massive confidence on test day, but if anxiety strikes, the solution may be a simple power pose. Researchers Dana R. Carney, Amy J.C. Cuddy, and Andy J. Yap wondered if a person could fake it ’til she makes it, whether nonverbal displays govern how we think and feel about ourselves? They predicted that posing in high-power nonverbal displays would cause neuroendocrine and behavioral changes that would trigger elevations in testosterone, decreases in cortisol, and increased feelings of power and tolerance for risk. Their findings in Power Posing: Brief Nonverbal Displays Affect NeuroendocrineLevels and Risk Tolerance confirmed their hypothesis: By simply changing physical posture, an individual prepares his or her…
The Link Between Sense of Self and Success
Many see the highest calling of human existence to be the search for some external truth. Others, however, move the locus of control and value to our innermost selves. Viktor E. Frankl, celebrated optimist and Holocaust survivor, summarized this position well in his influential book, Man’s Search for Meaning: Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the right answer to its problems and to fulfill the tasks which it constantly sets for each individual. Where, then, do we find answers to life’s problems–or at least the means to confront and prevail over them? Whether we’re dealing with existential threats or more common challenges at school, work, or play, we should start looking in the place we know (or should know) best: ourselves. Sense-of-self can be described simply as our self-image, our assessment of our personal abilities, appearance, and personality. Sense-of-self encapsulates what we perceive as our strengths and weaknesses,…
Avoiding the Overconfidence Trap
No one who lived through the second Bush Administration can forget Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld’s famous observation on what is known and unknown: “…As we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns – the ones we don’t know we don’t know.” Perhaps ironic based on how so many policies went wrong during that time period, this quote endures as a catchy insight into the nature of risk assessment. Self-aware individuals can make smart decisions based not only on what they know they know and don’t know, but have to also account for what they might not know they don’t know. If your head is spinning from the circular language, you’ll appreciate the Johari window, a visual representation…