Daniel Goleman, PhD, on Emotional Intelligence and Optimal Performance on

You have likely seen moments of peak performance—perhaps an athlete plays a perfect game or

a business that has a quarter with once-in-a-lifetime profits. Perhaps you have experienced something similar – playing a musical piece perfectly, making a faultless shot, or perhaps acing a final. But these moments are often elusive, and for every amazing day, we may have a hundred ordinary or even unsatisfying days. 

Now, imagine your best day at work - you exceed the goals set for you, your interactions with coworkers are productive and bristle-free, the new system you implemented has boosted productivity company-wide, and you leave the office feeling on top of the world rather than crushed under the weight of it. 

What if your best day could be every day? 

This is something that Dr. Daniel Goleman knows a lot about. Along with Dr. Cary Cherniss, they have written Optimal: How to Sustain Personal and Organizational Excellence Every Day, which discusses how emotional intelligence can help us have a great day, any day, or said another way, to consistently work at our “optimal” level.

Daniel Goleman is a renowned psychologist, author, and science journalist. For twelve years, he wrote for The New York Times, reporting on the brain and behavioral sciences. His 1995 book Emotional Intelligence: Why it can matter more than IQ was on The New York Times Best Seller list for a year-and-a-half, was a bestseller in numerous countries, is in print worldwide in 40 languages, and has sold over six million copies.

A frequent speaker on campuses and to businesses, he has worked with organizations around the globe, examining the way social and emotional competencies impact the bottom-line. Daniel is ranked as one of the 10 most influential business thinkers by the Wall Street Journal, and his articles in the Harvard Business Review are among the most frequently requested reprints. 

We covered topics of ways for a person to attain better self-awareness, organizational citizenship and becoming a “good organizational citizen” along with ways to become one. And research has found that, emotional intelligence can improve productivity and engagement, career advancement, job satisfaction, and better health. 

As I noted at the beginning, Daniel and his work have served as an inspiration and role model for me in my career as a psychologist, and I am deeply indebted. He shares his gifts with the world at large via living with purpose and fulfillment in order to live our lives in full.