From 600+ conversations with the world’s leading thinkers.
Silence is, by definition, an absence—an absence of voice, opinion, and life. It begins so subtly that it often goes unnoticed. We start by withdrawing or withholding our genuine thoughts from conversations, replacing them with what we presume others want to hear.
Once you recognise that, you can take any situation and interpret it in a way that makes it enjoyable. You no longer have to chase after certain outcomes or fear others. Whatever happens, happens.
In our sport, we're constantly wrestling, punching, kicking, often ending up with black eyes. It's this constant, intense physical contact that sets our sport apart, making the mental toughness required quite unique compared to others.
Money can't solve many of the problems that truly plague people. It can't solve the problems in a relationship between a husband and wife, beyond the narrow economic front. It can't straighten out the relationships you have with your children—in fact, it can make them worse.
In the case of Brazil, one of the most important things is the huge ethnic and cultural mixture which makes us a country with dynamism, vibrancy, and the ability to understand the psychology of other nations. We have problems, of course, but this is one of our huge strengths, and a huge foreign policy asset.
Just as you wouldn't want a surgeon to go from one operating theater to the next without having washed their hands, you don't want a manager to go from one context to the next without being in a position where they can actually do some good—or at least do no harm.
When Google (a very high IQ place!) looked into their highest performing teams, they found the hallmark of those teams was a sense of psychological and emotional safety.
The scientist mindset says, I will not let my ideas become an ideology. When I start to form an opinion, I should treat it as a hypothesis before doing some observations or experiments to test it. I should be just as excited to find out I was wrong as to prove I am right.
It is this sense of democracy which empowers us, the people of Brazil, to elect someone like Lula who- in turn- uses that same democratic power to pursue policies to successfully combat inequality. This then reflects on the psychology of the people of our nation.
I believe it boils down to confidence and fearlessness—believing in yourself and your own perspective. When you fail to follow your vision and instead listen to the consensus, it dilutes your vision. Consensus tends to pull everything towards mediocrity.
I do this thing- I say something out-loud–announce it to the public–and then I'm forced to do it because people are excited and I don't want to let them down.
At Hostage International, we tailor our approach to each individual's needs. We assign a liaison to support the hostage's family for as long as needed without a time limit. This personalised care underscores that no two cases are identical. Each must be treated as unique, with specific strategies developed to address its particular challenges.