blog - Ray Williams

People Who Apologize Frequently are Seen As More Warm and Sincere

Everyone is familiar with someone who constantly apologizes (maybe you are one). This is the opening sentence of an intriguing new study by Karina Schumann and colleagues published in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, that investigates how people...

Why Success is Fueled by Self-Compassion Rather Than Self-Esteem

Remember the last time you failed or made a crucial error. Do you still feel embarrassed and chastise yourself for being so foolish or self-centered? Do you frequently feel isolated in that mistake, as if you were the only one who made a mistake? Or do you try to...

Who are Better Leaders—Extroverts or Introverts?

Organizations, pop culture and the media are dominated by extroverts. We tend to reward extroverts who enjoy human interactions and tend to be enthusiastic, talkative, assertive, and gregarious. Extroverts are energized and thrive off being around other people. They...

Are Rich People Lonely and Unhappy?–Research

Does happiness have a price? There is no better-researched or more potent component of happiness than social connections, therefore one way to investigate this issue is to ask whether money may be used to purchase those components. There is no simple solution, even...

Why the Expression “What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Stronger” May Not Be True

The famous saying, “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,” is a popular saying used daily in music and movies and everyday conversation. The saying, originally penned by German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche was actually “That which does not kill us makes us...

Self-Confidence: Nature or Nurture?

Are you born being self-confident, or do you learn to be that way? This question is the classic nature vs. nurture inquiry. While conventional wisdom has been on the side of nurture, there’s research that indicates some people may be genetically predisposed to be... read more

How Apologies are the Glue That Holds Us Together

We all want an apology when someone does us wrong. Are the apologies effective? From the person giving the apology, it may be assumed so. From the perspective of the person receiving, it, maybe not. But showing changed behavior may be more convincing.... read more

Is Mind Wandering a Good or Bad Thing?

Is mind wandering a good thing or bad thing? Is it the same as being on “autopilot,” without being conscious of what you are doing? There seems to be several differing perspectives on these questions.

How Neuroscience Can Help Us Make Better Decisions

We make dozens of decisions every day, some simple, some more complex. Some internet sources estimate that an adult makes about 35,000 conscious decisions each day.We make 226.7 decisions each day on just food alone according to researchers at Cornell... read more

Why Nelson Mandela Was A Great Leader

Nelson Mandela, or “Madiba” as he was affectionately known, has died. Not only have we lost a great man and a great leader for his country, but also a shining example of the kind of leadership we so desperately need today. He has left a huge inspirational vacuum.

Why Emotional Intelligence is Critical for Great Leadership

There is clear evidence now that shows the strong connection between effective and successful leaders and their possession of high levels of emotional intelligence. Leadership is a process of social interaction where the leader’s ability to influence the... read more

Why we “choke” under pressure and what to do about it?

“Choking is suboptimal performance, not just poor performance. It’s a performance that is inferior to what you can do and have done in the past and occurs when you feel pressure to get everything right,” argues Beilock.

Are You Addicted to Busyness? The Damage to Productivity and Well Being

Talk to almost anyone today, and they complain about having “no time,” about being too busy. And we now equate that busyness to productivity and a characteristic of a successful life. The truth of the matter is that busyness does not result in greater productivity and that busyness is contributing to a culture of continuous anxiety and stress.

Do You Have a Social Media Addiction? The Benefits of Unplugging

This article is a 10 minute read. It’s been there for a while, gnawing at the back of your mind: the creeping suspicion that technological devices have reached the point of diminishing returns when it comes to productivity. Oh sure, being able to edit documents on a... read more

What do We Know About Happiness?

This extended and thorough article is a 20 minute read. Did you know what over 45,000,000 people search for happiness on GOOGLE monthly? And that’s just on the main search engine. As amazing as the number is, something struck. This number could... read more

Is Management Obsolete?

Our recent economic problems going back to at least 2008 and some would argue, much further than that, have often been attributed to external events such as the market place, globalization or the rise of other economies. Few have suggested it may be the problem of competent management and even that management, as we have known it, may be obsolete.

Why Don’t My Positive Affirmations Work?

“I am successful,” “I am a wonderful person,” “I will find love again,” and many other similar phrases that students, the broken-hearted and unfulfilled employees may repeat to themselves over and over again, hoping to change their lives. Self-help books through the ages, from Norman Vincent Peale’s The Power of Positive Thinking, all the way to the latest, The Secret, have encouraged people with low self-esteem to make positive self-statements or affirmations.Research suggests it may do more harm than good to many people.

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