Positive Intelligence: Why Only 20% of Teams and Individuals Achieve Their True Potential AND HOW YOU CAN ACHIEVE YOURS

I first read Shirzad’s book and then did the six-week app-guided program based on the book. I found both to be lifechanging with the impact that continues to build. I’ve been a regular meditator so, in the beginning, I thought this is just another approach to mindfulness. But it goes way beyond that. What Shirzad calls PQ Reps are these cool 10-second exercises that help you to change your brain activation in the middle of meeting life’s challenges. This has helped me to bring that same calmness and clarity that I feel in the middle of my meditation into the way I handle work and life’s challenges. The Saboteur concept is also very powerful. The ability to label these destructive voices in the head with Saboteur names like the Judge makes it easier to weaken them and know that you’re not stuck with them and don’t have to follow their advice. The App and the six-week program bring a huge added value of helping me focus on just one practice per day. Like the focus on just intercepting the Judge Saboteur today. I found it very motivating to keep going until those new ways became automatic habits. I highly recommend both the book and the program. Well done!

I am an MD/MBA who has worked in the finance field for over 15 years. I recently decided to make a career transition into the field of clinical informatics/big data analysis which is somewhat new to me and brought with it a bit of uncertainty, risk, and to some degree a nugget of self-doubt. I sought the help of an executive coach to help me with this decision. One of the first things my new coach recommended was that I read the book Positive Intelligence. Since I am already a fan of the field of Positive Psychology, I did not resist this recommendation. I must say that this book exceeded the lofty expectations that my coach praised it for. It is a practical, easy to read, can't put down book that teaches valuable life lessons and skills to increase performance in all facets of life. I practice the skills in the book on a daily basis. I have learned techniques to help my mind work for me and not against me -- the key learning that everyone will takeaway from the time invested in reading Positive Intelligence. I enjoyed it so much that I have recommended it to all of my family, friends and colleagues. I hope Dr. Chamine follows up with a sequel!

A very good book, easy to read. It does what it says it does and it does it well, while remaining easily accessible and, most of all, fun to read. I really enjoyed myself reading it. I hesitated a bit to buy it after reading some of the bad reviews, but after reading it I can only believe that these reviewers did not read it to the end. So here is my (Hyper-)rational meaning about it: What it does for you: - it shows you by which mechanisms your brain tries to protect itself even when it is not necessary, as a result limiting you both in your work and in your everyday life. - it gives you easy, quick and fun techniques to help you reverse that tendency, by getting more conscious of these defense mechanisms. That way they can still defend you when necessary, but they don't get in the way when you need to move forward. - it opens a window to your "feelings" in a no "touchy-feely" approach. Even if you are a very down to earth kind of person (which I am), you should not feel uncomfortable there. - it explains you the fundamentals of the science behind these techniques, and it gives you the references of the books and researches it is based on. That way you do not need to get a Masters degree in cognitive sciences to benefit from this book (but you can get started if you want :). What it does not do for you: - as already mentioned, it is not a complete science compendium. Do not expect hardcore science. Indeed, the author is quite clear as to when his words are the standard in the fields, and to when he is using his own words to summarize something more complex (and then he gives you the references you need to get more details if you want). NOTE: this aspect was at the core of all the bad reviews I read about this book. The tone was like > "it just says the same usual stuff, just with other words". Yes and I loved it. Because that way it speaks my language and the whole thing makes much more sense that a very complex scientific language or a hippie flower power approach (no judgement there, it is not just my preference) > "this or that book explains all that so much better and in more details". True, and the author explicitly explains that it was on purpose he kept it simple. Several of these books that are so much better are indeed referred to, and their contribution acknowledged. > "he's just trying to sell books". Of course he wants to sell books. He's obviously good at what he does so why should he not make money with it? > "it's not a book about work environment, it is a book on self-improvement". Well it is both. It can be useful on a strictly personal level, but almost all examples are work related. Even the ones on a personal level becomes personal only after deviating from an originally professional situation. Indeed if you only want a self-improvement book, you may find that it sounds too professional (seems that we are never happy anyways? What a coincidence! it's precisely what the book is about :-) - it does not go into deep psychological analyses of the feelings it mentions. The feelings involved are described in just enough details to understand the process, to relate to the description (see warning bellow) and to be able to practice the proposed technique. - it does not condemn you to a hard and long process if you want to follow its advice. Indeed, you will probably find out that if you just follow your usual habits with a bit more attention to what you are doing, you are already practicing the proposed techniques. - it does not solve the problem (if you have one) for you either. Just reading the book passively out of curiosity will sure teach you something, but it won't change your life. Reading actively is still necessary. Now a warning: you will probably feel that the book was written just for you. I am generally quite active, confident, and in touch with my feelings, good or bad, without letting them paralyze me or blind me (okay: not too much). My score to the positive intelligence test before reading the book was not bad at all, although still with room for improvement. Still many of the examples of "bad" reactions to the environment sounded terribly familiar. And I mean: terribly familiar, some examples could have been written about me!! My point it, I would bet you will feel the same. So read it with an open mind, when you feel he's talking about you embrace it, play with it, and turn it into your advantage. You never get too many of these.

Without a doubt top 3 books I have every read. There is a phrase that says that if you don't break your paradigms in a year, the year is due to nothing. This book definitely break my paradigms taught me that it is possible to accomplish great thing while being in peace and harmony with yourself in every step of the way. Yes ! The “No pain no gain “ mindset isn’t the most effective. There is a such much better path with POSITIVE INTELLIGENCE.

The concept is great and it makes sense, however the book is mostly filling thay is not adding much value.

Excellent read! Teaches you to be more capassionate towards yourself and others.

una "positiva" sorpresa: libro piacevole da leggere, ben scritto, chiaro e illuminante. lo consiglio decisamente a tutti. un bel regalo

Livré très inspirant avec des exercices pratiques qui fonctionnent. Je recommande!