PESSIMISM FOR A BETTER WORLD

Caitlin Cleveland@caitforall

NOT AWESOME

@caitforall

CAN YOU BE A

HAPPY PESSIMIST?

@caitforall

THE PROBLEM WE FACE AS HUMANS IN CONSULTING

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“DON’T RAIN ON MY

PARADE”

“DON’T BE A DEBBIE

DOWNER”

“KILLJOY”

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UR DOING IT WRONG

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OPTIMISM BIASBENDS OUR

VIEW

Facts were given(based on statistical records)

People adjusted guessesBut only if it was desirable

People guessed chancesProbability of cancer?

“How unrealistic optimism is maintained in the face of reality” Tali Sharot, Natural Neuroscience, Oct 2011.

PESSIMISM IS THE TRICK WE NEED

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IN A BLINK OF EVOLUTION, OUR BRAINS HAVE DOUBLED. WHY?

“How has the human brain evolved?” Scientific American. John Hawks, Jul. 2013

BAM!

LEFT BRAIN RIGHT BRAIN PESSIMISMOPTIMISM

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LEFT BRAIN RIGHT BRAIN

vigilancequest to perfect

self-improvementrisk avoiding

persistanceenthusiasm risk takingoptimism bias

@caitforall “The Neural Basis of Optimism and Pessimism” David Hecht.. Experimental Neurobiology, Sep 2013

1000+

@caitforall“An Evaluation of the Left-Brain vs. Right-Brain Hypothesis with Resting State Functional Connectivity Magnetic Resonance Imaging.” University of Utah. PLOS One, Aug. 2013

THE LEFT BRAIN/RIGHT BRAIN MYTH“Corpus callosum DTI MRI Scan. Sherbrooke Connectivity

Imaging Lab, Dec. 2014

ARISTOTLE CONFUCIUS

BIOLOGY HACK1. Need to balance your optimism bias?

Activate your pessimism + RH

2. Need to be persistent or enthusiastic? Activate your optimism + LH

@caitforall“Asymmetrical hemispheric activation and behavioral persistance” Schiff BB, Guirguis M, Kenwood C, Herman CP. Neuropsychology, Oct 1998

YOU COULD, BUT PROBABLY SHOULDN’T

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COMMUNICATION HACK

1. Tone + “Fairness” when raising delivering bad news

2. Say “and” not “but”3. Keep your enthusiasm, while improving your

chances of success

@caitforall“Displaying Fairness While Delivering Bad News: Testing the Effectiveness of Organizational Bad News Training in the Layoff Context”Manuela Richter, Cornelius J. König, Christopher Koppermann, and Michael Schilling. ‘Journal of Applied Psychology, 2016.

BUT HOW CAN WE CHECK OUR BALANCE IN THE MOMENT?

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3 P’s of Happy Pessimism

possible probable preventable

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TAKE AWESOME RISKS

NOT CRAZY ONES

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YOUR REPUTATION++You’re thoughtful and straight-shooting

YOUR HAPPINESS++You could adjust swiftly

CLIENT HAPPINESS++You prepared them in advance

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THE MOST SUCCESS, IN OUR MOST AMBITIOUS VISIONS WITH THE GREATEST KINDNESS

@caitforall

(THANK YOU)

QUESTIONS?

@caitforall | Caitlin Cleveland