As you complete the seminar, you might consider keeping a small card next to your computer with the question “which wolf?”

[Assignment Four: background for reflection, continued]

As you complete the seminar, you might consider keeping a small card next to your computer with the question “which wolf?” written on it. See if this experiment influences behavior. Timely reminders that elicit what Lincoln called “the better angels of our nature” are a proven way to enhance emotional intelligence (see how that term is defined, below).

If you’d like to build on these ideas, please watch a short TED video by Shawn Achor, who teaches for the Advanced Management Program at Wharton Business School. Learn how Shawn turned his sister into a unicorn (it’s a funny and instructive story, with practical suggestions at the end).

Many philosophical and religious traditions emphasize disciplined mindfulness. Here’s an example from the Christian Bible (Philippians 4:8):

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable —if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”

One aim in Assignment four is to introduce you to the concept of “emotional intelligence.” Psychologist Daniel Goleman, a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, is a leading researcher in that field. The good news in Goleman’s research is that emotional intelligence can be learned. If you’d like a real-life example of how emotional intelligence can grow during a lifetime, consider our assigned reading about Abraham Lincoln.