It’s a bit of a trick question but—

Who is in control of your emotions?

A big leadership training and development trainer recently posted the too-often heard comment, “… you can’t choose how you feel, but you can choose to act in a different way than you feel.”

I get frustrated when HALF-TRUTH like the above statement is taught in the workplace!

This is NOT #emotionalintelligence …

The idea that you cannot make yourself feel something treats you as a victim and a weak slave to emotions. It tells you that you are stuck in a life of a lie, like a victim, feeling one way, but required to act another.

The half-truth is that you don’t have to be controlled by your feeling, and you can choose to act otherwise, in contrast to your feelings…

However, you also are the commander of your emotions.

You can be aware that your feelings are negative, destructive, to you or others, and choose to see differently, think differently, act differently, and feel differently.

You are not stuck with bad feelings!

Choose to feel compassion, forgiveness, kindness, toward people. Choose to feel anger against wrong, instead of resentment against people, courage in the face of danger, rather than fear or defeat. That is HOW you genuinely act differently than how you are inclined to feel. Sure you have a natural inclination to feel self-pity, vengeful, spiteful, but you are also able to choose how you will feel about a situation.

STOP #victimmentallity and start teaching #leadershipskills