Changing Employee Behavior: What Managers Need To Know: by Ray B. Williams

Changing employee behavior:
What managers need to know

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By Ray Williams May 30, 2010 – 4:24 pm

By Ray B. Williams
When executives and managers are faced
with the challenge of trying to change or
modify employee behavior and
performance, management strategies often
encompass new approaches to coaching
and motivation. Yet, many of those strategies and
approaches may not be grounded in the latest
knowledge about human behavior.
Advances in neuroscience now can provide
guidance for the development of a new view of
mental health/illness that can be translated into
practical applications for personal, executive and life
coaches as well as managers wishing to engage in
coaching activities with their employees.
In a ground breaking article entitled “A New
Intellectual Framework for Psychiatry,” Nobel Prize
winner Eric Kandel proposed several principles
based on neuroscience research. Of these
principles, perhaps the most important is that “all
mental processes, even the most complex
psychological processes, derive from the operation
of the brain,” Kandel also suggested that genes do
not explain differences in mental illness and that
experience and environment have significant
influences. Researchers Nydia Cappes, Raquel
Andres-Hynan and Larry Davidson of the Yale
School of Medicine have proposed 7 principles of
brain based psychotherapy that all coaches should
become familiar with:
 Principle 1: Both genetics and the environment
interact in the brain to shape(defini) the
individual. Both nature and nurture(educatia
celor 7 ani) are equally capable of modifying
brain structures;
 Principle 2: Experience transforms the brain.
New experiences, creating new neural
pathways, can physically change the brain.
 Principle 3: Memory systems in the brain are
interactive. Memories are not a perfect account
of what happened; they can be constructed at
the time of retrieval in accordance with the
method used to retrieve it. The sense of well-
being and the development of personality and
emotions are clearly tied to the capacity to store
and retrieve ( recupera, remedia)information;
 Principle 4: Cognitive and emotional processes
work in partnership. There can be no knowledge
without emotion. Emotional feelings and
memories are interactive;
 Principle 5: Bonding(legaturi) and attachment
provide the foundation of change. The
therapeutic relationship between coach and
client can have the capacity to help clients
modify neural systems and enhance( amplifica,
intensifica) emotional regulation;
 Principle 6: Imagining activates and stimulates
the same brain systems as does real
perception;
 Principle 7: The brain can process nonverbal
and unconscious information. Unconscious
processes exert great influence on
thought(ganduri), feelings and actions. It is
possible to react to unconscious perceptions
without consciously understanding the reaction.
In the past decade, coaching as a profession has
grown significantly to the point of being the second
fastest growing profession next to IT. Organizations
such as the International Coaching Federation have
attempted(a incercat) to establish uniform principles
and standards to underpin (a pune temelia)
coaching practices, but coaching remains an
unregulated profession with a wide(larg) range of
training programs and coaching practices. As a
trainer of coaches entering the profession or
sharpening(ascutire, aici imbunatatire)their skills, or
in assisting executives in augmenting (a mari,
completa) their coaching skills, I have been struck
by the prevalence of the basic lack of a fundamental
understanding of the principles of human behavior
and human performance by many. Anyone who is
serious about becoming a coach or practicing their
coaching skills would be wise to become
knowledgeable about the most recent developments
in neuroscience, such as the seven principles
described above.
Ray B. Williams is Co-Founder of Success IQ University and President of Ray Williams Associates, companies
located in Phoenix and Vancouver, providing leadership training, personal growth and executive coaching services.
Read more: http://business.financialpost.com/2010/05/30/changing-employee-behavior-what-managers-need-to-

know/#ixzz0qHBQX4Pt
The National Post is now on Facebook. Join our fan community today.
Changing employee behavior:

What managers need to know
 Comments
 Twitter
 Facebook
 LinkedIn
 Digg
 Reddit
 Buzz
 Email
By Ray Williams May 30, 2010 – 4:24 pm
By Ray B. Williams
When executives and managers are faced with the challenge of trying to change or modify
employee behavior and performance, management strategies often encompass new
approaches to coaching and motivation. Yet, many of those strategies and approaches may not
be grounded in the latest knowledge about human behavior.
Advances in neuroscience now can provide guidance for the development of a new view of
mental health/illness that can be translated into practical applications for personal, executive and life coaches as well
as managers wishing to engage in coaching activities with their employees.
In a ground breaking article entitled “A New Intellectual Framework for Psychiatry,” Nobel Prize winner Eric Kandel
proposed several principles based on neuroscience research. Of these principles, perhaps the most important is that
“all mental processes, even the most complex psychological processes, derive from the operation of the brain,”
Kandel also suggested that genes do not explain differences in mental illness and that experience and environment
have significant influences. Researchers Nydia Cappes, Raquel Andres-Hynan and Larry Davidson of the Yale
School of Medicine have proposed 7 principles of brain based psychotherapy that all coaches should become
familiar with:
 Principle 1: Both genetics and the environment interact in the brain to shape the individual. Both nature and
nurture are equally capable of modifying brain structures;
 Principle 2: Experience transforms the brain. New experiences, creating new neural pathways, can
physically change the brain.
 Principle 3: Memory systems in the brain are interactive. Memories are not a perfect account of what
happened; they can be constructed at the time of retrieval in accordance with the method used to retrieve it.
The sense of well-being and the development of personality and emotions are clearly tied to the capacity to
store and retrieve information;
 Principle 4: Cognitive and emotional processes work in partnership. There can be no knowledge without
emotion. Emotional feelings and memories are interactive;
 Principle 5: Bonding and attachment provide the foundation of change. The therapeutic relationship between
coach and client can have the capacity to help clients modify neural systems and enhance emotional
regulation;
 Principle 6: Imagining activates and stimulates the same brain systems as does real perception;
 Principle 7: The brain can process nonverbal and unconscious information. Unconscious processes exert
great influence on thought, feelings and actions. It is possible to react to unconscious perceptions without
consciously understanding the reaction.
In the past decade, coaching as a profession has grown significantly to the point of being the second fastest growing
profession next to IT. Organizations such as the International Coaching Federation have attempted to establish
uniform principles and standards to underpin coaching practices, but coaching remains an unregulated profession
with a wide range of training programs and coaching practices. As a trainer of coaches entering the profession or
sharpening their skills, or in assisting executives in augmenting their coaching skills, I have been struck by the
prevalence of the basic lack of a fundamental understanding of the principles of human behavior and human
performance by many. Anyone who is serious about becoming a coach or practicing their coaching skills would be
wise to become knowledgeable about the most recent developments in neuroscience, such as the seven principles
described above.
Ray B. Williams is Co-Founder of Success IQ University and President of Ray Williams Associates, companies
located in Phoenix and Vancouver, providing leadership training, personal growth and executive coaching services.
Read more: http://business.financialpost.com/2010/05/30/changing-employee-behavior-what-managers-need-to-

know/#ixzz0qHBQX4Pt
The National Post is now on Facebook. Join our fan community today.

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Changing employee behavior:

What managers need to know

By Ray Williams May 30, 2010 – 4:24 pm

Read more: http://business.financialpost.com/2010/05/30/changing-employee-behavior-what-managers-need-to-