Preventing Panic Button Moments!
From politics to penalty kicks, how to keep your head when the world is losing it's.
What is the consistent skill that led to A) avoiding failure for the English penalty takers, B) a rapid French left-wing resistance and C) Kier Starmer turning our sense of inevitable disappointment on Friday into cautious optimism by Monday...?
A) Previous England managers have said there's little point in preparing for international penalties because the pressure is so high. Southgate has taught tools from breathwork to embodiment to a new generation that is more emotionally aware than the last.
B) In under two weeks, hundreds of aspiring French politicians calmly stepped down to allow for strategic victories, placing a far-right resistance above their ego and ambitions when the threat of a Le-Pen-led victory looked like reality.
C) Possibly the most exciting (which is saying a lot considering that the UK has got it’s first female Chancellor) first step by Kier & Co has been the calm, calculated and understated appointment of new ministers for prisons, army, science, etc, placing real-world experience into the unreal world of government. It surprises me how few people know James Timpson, the new minister for prisons, has spent his life running a legendary social enterprise rehabilitating ex-offenders.
There's one clear thread between all of these good decisions, made in highly volatile moments when panic would have been the obvious alternative.
And, this ability to play it cooler than cool, when things get weirder than weird, is the number one skill thousands of professionals have put at the top of the list when we've asked them what tool they would most value in finding the upside in uncertainty.
And the answer is: Emotional Regulation:
A.k.a; keeping your head whilst others lose theirs.
A.k.a; staying cool and clear-sighted when the world hits the fan.
A.k.a; not hitting the panic button when things go south.
And because we’re asked for it so often, the Uncertainty Experts team is hosting a free webinar that showcases practical tools, memorable stories, and evidence-based research on mastering emotional regulation in times of ambiguity and the unknown.
It's all part of our free monthly webinar series, Eat Uncertainty For Breakfast, where, once a month, Katherine Templar Lewis, me and our growing community of Uncertainty Experts chop up practical tools for navigating the unexpected.
So, if you'd like to stay on the right side of uncertainty, whether it’s nerve-wracking football or high-stakes politics, as the next few weeks unveil what's in store, please come and join us.
Star in our Uncertainty Experts book?
We are very happy to be working with a major publishing house on a book based on the Uncertainty Experts and all our research from the last few years, but for now, formal announcements and book launch invites are to come!
In the meantime, in addition to the stories of the ex-gangsters, smugglers, and refugees we feature in our work and the cutting-edge science of uncertainty, we want to include as many real-life stories from the people it’s helped.
So, have you been to one of our masterclasses, joined any of the online cohorts, were you in any of the research groups, pilots or early workshops, and have you applied any of the tools to positively affect your life or the lives of others?
If so, and you’d like to be mentioned in the book, then please fill in this short survey with your details and a few lines about your experience. We want to include as many as possible to make the book as relatable as possible and we’d Love to hear from you.
A nice cup of tea with Jack
Jack Parsons, aka The UK’s Chief Youth Officer, is a young man I’ve admired for years. Rather nicely, he invited me to his flat for a cup of tea and a chat.
Only he got the cameras and mic’s out, along with some of the most thoughtful, challenging, and thorough questions I’ve ever been asked on a podcast.
All in all, it made for a good conversation, which Jack’s team cut together into a much brisker thirty minutes here than the hour or so he let me drone on for in person.
Hard As Nails 2: Take Part in Social Science Research.
I’ve received a great deal of support and interest in this emerging idea about masculinity, identity, mental health, and allyship, for which I’m very grateful.
Following an initial research group in May, we’re designing a more in-depth experiment based on positive results.
Last time, nearly 20 men had their nails painted on a fun evening in East London and then went about their everyday lives for a week, recording the resulting conversations.
In September, we’d like to run multiple groups in various locations against some control measures and are looking for volunteers; please hit reply if that’s you.
And last but by no means least…
Regular followers of my adventures will know that a few years ago, I discovered mid-lockdown that ‘love at first Zoom is an actual thing as I began working with Katherine.
After Netflix encouraged us to ‘work on our chemistry’ as we began presenting together, it became clear that I was going to love Katherine until the end of time.
So, surrounded by just our immediate family, fireworks and smoke grenades, we recently were married in glorious English countryside sunshine.
Wedding Part 2, the party to end all parties for our friends and loved ones to follow…
