Sad, Mad, Anxious? How to Work Through Your ‘Big Feelings’

HBR IdeaCast

Harvard Business Review

Leadership, Entrepreneurship, Communication, Marketing, Business, Business/management, Management, Business/marketing, Business/entrepreneurship, Innovation, Hbr, Strategy, Economics, Finance, Teams, Harvard

4.4 • 1.9K Ratings

🗓️ 5 July 2022

⏱️ 30 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

When things aren't going well -- in our own lives, our community, our country, or the world -- it's hard to be productive at work. Most of us also shy away from sharing what we're feeling with colleagues and bosses. But when strong emotions like anxiety, anger, and despair hit you -- due to problems at work or outside it -- it's important to recognize and thoughtfully address them. Liz Fosslien and Mollie West Duffy are coauthors of the book "Big Feelings: How to Be Okay When Things Are Not Okay," and they share research-backed advice on how to do just that.

Transcript

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0:00.0	So you got the job. Now what? Join me, Eleni Mata, on HBR's new original podcast, New
0:08.1	Here, the Young Professionals Guide to Work, and how to make it work for you. Listen for
0:13.8	free wherever you get your podcasts. Just search New Here. See you there!
0:30.0	Welcome to the HBR idea cast from Harvard Business Review. I'm Allison Beard. So I have a
0:49.2	confession. For the past month, I feel like I haven't been the best performer at work. And
0:53.8	why is that? Well, I am really sad and really, really angry about some of the things
0:59.8	we're hearing about in the news. Mass shootings of school children continued inaction on
1:05.1	common sense gun laws, evidence of political leaders' attempts to overturn an election,
1:10.7	and most recently judicial decisions that roll back are civil liberties. Of course, I'm
1:15.8	also anxious on a personal level about my own kids' future and on a macro level about
1:20.5	the state of the world, you know, from war in Europe to the ongoing pandemic to climate
1:26.4	change. And then, you know, just to bring it full circle, I'm also sad and worried and a little
1:30.9	angry about the fact that because I'm distracted by all of these things I'm not doing as well as I
1:35.4	could at work. But I'm hoping I'm not alone. I think maybe some of you out there listening
1:40.2	feel the same way. I've certainly talked to colleagues and friends who do. We're experiencing
1:45.4	what our guests call big feelings. And they're here today to talk to us about what happens when
1:50.5	they intrude in or even arise in our work lives. And most importantly, they're going to give
1:55.7	us some advice on how to manage our emotions more effectively. Liz Fosteline and Molly Westuffy
2:01.7	are co-authors of the book Big Feelings. How to be okay when things are not okay. Liz, Molly,
2:08.2	welcome. We're really excited to be here. Thanks for having us.
2:11.3	So you heard my list just now. You can see that I'm struggling with a lot of big feelings.
2:23.0	You know, I would love to say, all right, let me put that aside and let me distract myself with work.
	...

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