What's Stopping You?: Why Smart People Don't Always Reach Their Potential, and How You Can

Developing Better Responses

My actions resulted in someone losing their job and I have lived with the guilt ever since. And if that sounds odd given the circumstances, I see it as a sign of my growth that I can now see that it was my poor handling of the episode that allowed it to escalate. And it was my insecurities that caused it to develop in the first place. The situation was my fault, not his.

Here’s what I could have done differently:

• I could have been less emotional. My overly-emotional responses when the problems developed weakened my posi­tion – especially with the senior management – and lost me the respect of colleagues and allies. Of course, it is difficult for insecure people to simply switch off their emotions – especially when ...