62: The Power of Regret, with Daniel Pink, Author, “The Power of Regret: How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward”
Meet Daniel Pink:
Daniel Pink is the author of five New York Times bestsellers aboutbusiness, work, creativity, and behavior. His latest is “The Power of Regret: How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward.” Daniel hosts a MasterClass on sales and persuasion, and he contributes to in The New York Times, Harvard Business Review, The Atlantic, and Slate. Previously, Daniel was the host and co-executive producer of the television show “Crowd Control.” Daniel received a B.A. from Northwestern University, and a JD from Yale Law School.
Key Insights:
Regret is a complex, but common negative emotion. It is uncomfortable, but when confronted, it can be transformative.
- Transformational Regret. Reflecting on regret has been found to decrease cognitive biases, and improve skills related to problem solving, strategy, and negotiation. Daniel shares research that showed that participants who were asked to reflect on what they regretted about a previous negotiation exercise did better in the next negotiation. (12:05)
- Four Categories of Regret. Through his research, Daniel found four core regrets. foundational regrets are about stability, often related to finances or health. Boldness regrets are about taking chances, like traveling or starting a business. Moral regrets are about doing the right thing. Lastly, connection regrets are related to the loss of relationships. The most common regrets are connection regrets. (17:08)
- How Leaders Can Use Regret. Daniel encourages leaders to share their regrets and mistakes. It creates an opportunity for powerful conversations about what can be learned from regrets and how to prevent future ones. It also helps normalize regret, which is important because regret is normal. (30:55)
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