This article is the transcript of a spoken talk. The brain and behaviour mechanisms described are simplified for a general audience and are not clinical guidance. Sources for the research referenced appear at the end.
When your team is afraid, anxious, or angry, they just aren't thinking at their best. It's not because they're not motivated. It's neuroscience, and if you're not actively managing it, you're leaving potential on the table. I'm Floyd Kelly, founder of NEUVERO. As a VP, I led global software teams, and now I use neuroscience to help executives and entrepreneurs unlock the unique potential in themselves and their teams.
Let's dive in. How many times has your team set a bold goal, committed to a big customer or the board, and then slammed directly into a brick wall? Maybe you found a last minute security hole. Maybe one of the teams got the design wrong and now it's not going to come together. Quality is behind where it needs to be.
Or maybe the initial customers just hate the solution. I've been in your shoes. Emotions flare up. Leaders point fingers, or they say the sky is falling. The problem seems intractable, and neuroscience can tell us why. While a little bit of stress improves performance, high stress literally shuts down the part of the brain responsible for problem solving.
Research shows that prefrontal cortex (PFC) activity can drop when the stress is on, and that means slower decisions, tunnel vision, and missed opportunities. Exactly when you need the sharp thinking the most. So what's a leader to do? Here is a simple and proven skill you can apply to get people's brains back online fast.
It's called validation. When fear and frustration is high, acknowledge it. Say things like, I get why you're stressed. It makes sense. Anyone would feel that way in this situation. It sounds soft, but it works. If you've ever read Never Split the Difference, you'll learn that Chris Voss, a top hostage negotiator, calls this tactical empathy. In life and death situations he uses this strategy first, naming emotions and showing understanding. If he can regulate those emotions, their PFC is going to come back online and there's a chance to find a solution. When you validate a colleague's experience, even if they're wrong, you are reducing stress and recruiting their peak cognitive performance at the very moment you need it the most.
This is simple to describe, but it's hard to do, especially when you're under pressure yourself. NEUVERO is here to help. If you'd like individualized training or coaching on this topic or the neuroscience of leadership, please book a call using the link below.
References
- Arnsten, A. F. T. (2015). Stress weakens prefrontal networks: molecular insults to higher cognition. Nature Neuroscience, 18(10), 1376-1385. doi:10.1038/nn.4087
- Arnsten, A. F. T. (2009). Stress signalling pathways that impair prefrontal cortex structure and function. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 10(6), 410-422. doi:10.1038/nrn2648
- Diamond, D. M., Campbell, A. M., Park, C. R., Halonen, J., & Zoladz, P. R. (2007). The temporal dynamics model of emotional memory processing… and the Yerkes-Dodson law. Neural Plasticity, 2007, 1-33. doi:10.1155/2007/60803
- Shenk, C. E., & Fruzzetti, A. E. (2011). The impact of validating and invalidating responses on emotional reactivity. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 30(2), 163-183. doi:10.1521/jscp.2011.30.2.163
Adapted from the Neuvero video Your Team's Brain on Stress. Related: The Human Harness (the prefrontal cortex going offline under load) and Why Capable Leaders Default to "No" Under Pressure, on naming stress instead of reacting to it.