Society of Consulting Psychology

Synopsis: Sport psychologists have been working with the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) to provide athletes with a competitive edge. A cadre of psychologists employed by the USOC works with athletes and coaches to help them achieve peak performance. These psychologists employ a host of methods, including mindfulness, competitive simulation, and virtual reality to make sure that the athletes are ready for any possible scenario.

Dr. Ken Nowack (www.envisialearning.com), co-editor of Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice & Research, was recently interviewed by an influential journalist/blogger.  The primary topic was the research contained in a special CPJ issue about the neuroscience of consulting, including coaching, psychological safety/interpersonal trust, habit/behavior change and enhancing employee resilience.

While consulting to the Minister of Health of Zanzibar and the State University of Zanzibar this December, I noticed something peculiar here. In hotel lobbies across the island, there are Christmas trees of all shapes and varieties. But the island is almost 99 percent Muslim, with almost all of the hotels run by families who are not Christian, or from cultures that would celebrate Christmas.

Diversity—the many ways in which people are different—can be a vital resource for groups and organizations. We know from research, for example, that diversity helps to catalyze innovation, especially under the right conditions. When we welcome and engage with diversity, we are more likely to encourage generation and sharing of new and different ideas and to bring together a greater variety of ideas, information, perspectives, and opinions—ultimately leading to better decisions and problem solving.

Why isn't work an adventure? For many people, work sucks. The polite term for sucky work is that labor generates "disutility." Even that word "labor" conjures fatigue-inducing physical exertion. But still we can ask the question: Why isn't your job making you happy? 

Have you ever experienced leaders who seem to lose it during meetings or tense interactions with others–emotions spewing out of them like hot lava leaving an active Mount St. Helens? Or, dealing with those analytical, controlled and “closed” leaders who always appear to be emotionally constipated?

Is there such a thing as healthy Type A workaholics?

Are you working hard to build a career you love, but feeling stressed and exhausted? You could be burning out. The physical and emotional price you’ll pay means that you’re more likely to end up in a doctor’s office than a corner office.

I have had the privilege of co-facilitating a presentation at the annual Consulting Psychology Conference and at the APA National Convention for the past several years on transitioning into consulting. One frequent question has been “how to I know I have the right stuff?”

In the early hours of September 4, 2010, I was abruptly awakened by a deafening roar and violent jolts that lasted almost a minute. This 7.1-magnitude earthquake was the first of more than eleven thousand seismic events that shook the Canterbury region in New Zealand to its core over the next two years. These left an indelible mark on the community, from substantial infrastructure damage to disrupted businesses and services. The Canterbury earthquakes posed a major resilience test for the region’s infrastructure and people, the latter evident in reports of significant declines in mental health and well-being.

Does deliberate practice always lead to enhanced effectiveness and performance? In Part 2 of this blog we continue the discussion.

Practice makes perfect according to an old saying. Or at least if you do it enough you will become an expert. Or does it?

Whenever the topic of job burnout gets raised, the first question asked is usually, “What can we do about it?” Indeed, the drive to discover solutions is so prevalent that the e-journal that I coedit, Burnout Research, has just sent out a call for a special issue on “Challenges of Doing Burnout Interventions.”

While we must share that these guidelines are still in their final review by APA (and not yet formally approved), we wanted to make them publicly available as soon as possible to our membership as we recognize many are actively looking to advance their skills or develop curriculum to advance the skills of newly transitioned consultants.

For the past 10 years, the American Psychological Association has conducted the Stress in America™ survey to examine how stress affects the health and well-being of adults in the US. The most recent study, which surveyed more than 3,500 adults in August 2016, found that almost two-thirds of respondents agree either “strongly” or “somewhat” that periodically “unplugging” or taking a “digital detox” is important for their mental health.