Canadian HR Reporter

SEPTEMBER 8, 2014 CANADIAN HR REPORTER & STRATEGIC CAPABILITY NETWORK Credit: argus (Shutterstock) Rewiring leadership Understanding how the brain works can seriously boost employee performance BY LIZ BERNIER Most of us don't know much about what goes on in the inexplicable recesses of our brains. But learning more about it can go a long way in the workplace. Applying lessons from neurosci- ence to leadership can change the way we talk about relationships, according to Josh Davis, director of research and lead professor at the NeuroLeadership Institute in New York City. "It enables us to have conversa- tions we wouldn't have been able to have before. So, in that way, we're creating a new language," said Davis at a Strategic Capability Network event in Toronto. "We're not just talking about changing the way a company's leadership (works) but we're actu- ally talking about changing what it means to be a leader, what we think of when we set out to lead a group." e vision of the institute is to transform leadership from the ground up, said Davis. "Leadership is all about work- ing with other people, influenc- ing other people, guiding other people… all of that is heavily in- fluenced by how our brain works." Neuroleadership knowledge can be applied to four domains in the workplace: decision-making, problem-solving and learning; regulating emotions; collabora- tion; and facilitating change. "ese are four types of think- ing that we think cover the space that a leader needs to engage in," he said. With knowledge of how the brain works, people can try to take advantage of its processes to achieve better results, said Davis. For example, a manager might want to turn up the pressure to facilitate greater productivity or creativity. "You light a fire under someone, and for some people, that really gets them in the zone. But then, for other people… you light a fire under them and they go crazy. So the question is why does that hap- pen? Can we predict that? Can we know when that might happen for certain people or for ourselves?" Prefrontal cortex One of the first things to under- stand in thinking about the brain and productivity is the prefrontal cortex, a large part of the brain with many sub-parts. "e prefrontal cortex is the part that is most different in hu- man beings than in other ani- mals," he said. "It is so much larger in human beings than in our next closest relatives that it really calls into question, I think, many of the things that we wonder about other animals." e pre-frontal cortex also cor- relates across species to the size of the social network the species has to keep track of, he said. So it is actually necessary for conscious, focused awareness — it's the part of the brain people need to engage when they're trying to focus, pur- sue goals and pay deliberate, con- scious attention. ere are two neurochemicals that are key to the prefrontal cor- tex operating optimally, said Da- vis. One is called norepinephrine. "Norepinephrine will be released when you get stressed out or there's some kind of excite- ment. It's the same chemical as adrenaline, but we call it norepi- nephrine in the brain," he said. It helps a person to "amplify the signal" — whereas the other chemical, dopamine, helps de- crease the noise. "ese two neurochemicals will make it easier for the prefrontal cortex to function," said Davis. "When these chemicals are re- leased into the prefrontal cortex, it will help it operate more effec- tively. But if you have too much, then it's going to cause problems. "As arousal of any kind increas- es, then for a little while perfor- mance also increases. We get bet- ter at what we're doing. And then as arousal keeps on going, we get worse." And it's important to know which levers can help shift these chemicals. "Some of the things that will do that (are) novelty — if you come across something novel, that's going to help release dopamine. If you just expect rewards, you don't actually have to go to the dinner, you can just think, 'Hey, I have dinner plans tonight,' that can release dopamine. Anytime you exceed expectations, that will release dopamine as well… stress will increase norepinephrine, fear will probably increase both," he said. And, perhaps not surprisingly, coffee is a kickstarter that will im- pact both chemicals, said Davis. "If you find yourself really over- whelmed one day and you know about this curve, then you can check in and say, 'Wait a second. I can't think straight — is it because I'm over-aroused or is it because I'm under-aroused?'" Regulating emotion Another area that's helpful to learn about is regulating emo- tion, said Davis. People tend to think about emotions as some- thing to "get rid of " — they're a problem and they're getting in the SHIFT > pg. 14 e prefrontal cortex is actually necessary for conscious, focused awareness.

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