PPP 397 | Keeping Your Poise When Emotions are Rising, with Neuropsychologist Dr. Julia DiGangi

People and Projects Podcast: Project Management Podcast

When Emotions Are Rising On Your Project

Let’s say you’re sitting in a meeting tomorrow for a project you are leading. You’re looking to get sign-off and, based on the pre-meetings you had with key stakeholders, the meeting should go smoothly.

But seemingly out of the blue, a key stakeholder speaks up and starts sharing objections. Right there in front of everyone, which includes your boss, by the way. Things are starting to derail and you can feel some anger starting to build up.

If we could see a thought bubble over you, you might be saying, “I can’t believe they’re sabotaging this! They didn’t bring any of this up when we talked about it before the meeting! They’re throwing me and my project under the bus!”

That’s a pivotal leadership moment right there.

Maybe for you, it’s a demanding boss. Or a deeply emotional situation outside of work. The critical issue is this: How do we respond? Does it help, or do we make it worse? How do we navigate the emotional rollercoaster of leading teams and projects—and families and friendships? Our ability to do that can make an enormous difference in our careers and life.

In this episode, we’re continuing a series of discussions on the topic of our emotions. And I’m excited to introduce you to Dr. Julia Digangi. For many years, Julia has worked with individuals who have endured the worst traumas, from survivors of domestic abuse to combat veterans, and helped them transform their energy and rise to powerful new heights. Based on her experience, she has recently published a remarkably insightful new book Energy Rising: The Neuroscience of Leading with Emotional Power.

What I love about this book is that it gives a perspective on navigating the emotional challenges of our life in a way I’ve not seen in any other books. It’s deeply based in research and practice but it’s accessible to all of us, even if we don’t know our amygdala from our anterior cingulate cortex. Ha!

You can learn more about Julia and her work at DrJuliaDigangi.com/.

For more on this topic, check out:

• Episode 394, with Joshua Freedman about his book on emotional intelligence.
• Episode 395, with Josefine Campbell about her book on helping when you and your team are low on energy, and
• Episode 396, with Thomas Curran about his book on perfectionism.

Gift a Loved One a Head Start With Their Career

Do you know someone who is in college or maybe recently graduated?

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I bring this up because I want you to check out our new course entitled just that: No Freaking Idea: How to Navigate Career Uncertainty. It’s a career guide for people who don’t know what they want to do, and it has been so fun to hear the feedback on the course.

Whether you are wondering about the next steps in your career or it's a son or daughter and you'd like to give them a head start as a gift, learn more by going to NoFreakingIdea.courses. Thanks!

Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast!

Talent Triangle: Power Skills

The following music was used for this episode:

Music: Underground Shadows by MusicLFiles Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/12024-underground-shadows License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Music: Energetic & Drive Indie Rock by WinnieTheMoog Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/10443-energetic-drive-indie-rock License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license