Daniel Goleman

Daniel Goleman

Psychologist and Author, Optimal: How to Sustain Personal and Organizational Excellence Every Day

An older man with gray hair and beard wearing a dark jacket over a red shirt, looking straight at the camera against a plain light background.

Psychologist and author of multiple books on topics such as psychology, leadership, and science – including bestselling titles like Emotional Intelligence and Focus – Dr. Daniel Goleman has transformed the way the world educates children, relates to family and friends, and conducts business. A frequent speaker to businesses of all kinds and sizes, he has worked with leaders around the globe, examining the way social and emotional competencies impact the bottom line.

Ranked one of the 10 most influential business thinkers by The Wall Street Journal, Goleman’s articles in the Harvard Business Review are among the most frequently requested reprints of all time. One of these pieces, “The Focused Leader,” won the 2013 HBR McKinsey Award for best article of the year. Apart from his writing on emotional intelligence, Goleman has written books on topics including self-deception, creativity, transparency, meditation, social and emotional learning, ecoliteracy, and the ecological crisis.

He is also the host of First Person Plural: Emotional Intelligence and Beyond, a podcast about us, the systems we’re a part of, and how we can create an emotionally intelligent future.

4 min
Mindfulness practices can considerably improve the symptoms of depression and anxiety, especially when used with psychotherapy.
3 min
People who have meditated for thousands of hours exhibit a remarkable difference in their brainwaves.
7 min
Consider stress junk food for your brain, while meditation is the gym that can repair and reshape you after years of a bad brain diet.
4 min
If you want to feel less pain, meditate more often. According to this new research, it can genuinely erase the emotional reaction to pain. And since it's long been said by coaches and some doctors that most pain is within the mind, here's scientific proof to back that assertion up.
6 min
Meditation is a lot more than just chilling out and reflecting. It can actually rewire your brain to become a better person.
6 min
Your mind doesn't run parallel tasks, it has to trade off one focus for another. The good news is that mindfulness meditation can hone your attention span, and reduce stress and anxiety.
1 min
The author sees radical transparency as a sustainable way forward in a smart consumer economy.