How Positive Intelligence could be beneficial to innovation in the corporate world

Sometimes, depending on the situation, we find it difficult to think of something bad as a learning opportunity, causing us to always think the worst. And that's why Ricardo Kazuo, VP of Marketing and Internal Coach at SAP, brought up the topic of Positive Intelligence in our last meetup. He demystified the concept and showed how we can practice our brain to have the ability to be concentrated during chaos and manage to respond to challenges with a more positive and less sabotaging mindset. He explained to us how we can learn to migrate our internal saboteurs to leverage forces that are within us, which are called sages.

Positive intelligence is a concept in psychology that refers to the capability to control our mind and shift it from negative to positive thought patterns. It is the science and practice of developing mastery over your mind so you can reach your full potential for happiness and success. 

Positive intelligence could be a powerful tool for change agents and innovation professionals, helping them to overcome resistance, boost creativity, enhance collaboration, promote psychological safety, increase engagement and commitment, and manage stress. It can enhance not only their effectiveness but also the success of their change and innovation initiatives.

Saboteurs, as described in Positive Intelligence, are our internal enemies or negative mental habits that sabotage our best efforts. They can be an inherent part of us, a learned behavior, or a protective mechanism developed over time. These include the Judge, Controller, Victim, Avoider, Pleaser, and others.

Saboteurs can pose significant challenges to change and innovation, from fostering resistance to change, inhibiting creativity, harming collaboration, undermining psychological safety, reducing engagement, and increasing stress. Therefore, identifying and managing these saboteurs is an important part of applying positive intelligence in the corporate world.

We can’t and the concept is not to eliminate saboteurs but learn how to deal with and manage them. 

change often triggers fear and resistance in organizations. Positive intelligence can help change agents and innovators manage their negative reactions and guide others to do the same. This reduces resistance and fosters a more open, creative environment that is conducive to change and innovation.

positive intelligence encourages openness to new ideas and promotes a growth mindset. This is crucial in innovation where novel ideas need to be generated and implemented. It helps individuals and teams to stay optimistic and resilient in the face of setbacks and to persist until they find solutions.

positive intelligence can improve empathy, understanding, and communication among team members, which can enhance collaboration. This is crucial in both change management and innovation, which require effective teamwork.

positive intelligence can improve empathy, understanding, and communication among team members, which can enhance collaboration. This is crucial in both change management and innovation, which require effective teamwork.

positive intelligence can help individuals find meaning and purpose in their work, increasing their engagement and commitment. This is important for driving change and innovation forward.

change and innovation can be stressful. Positive intelligence techniques, like mindfulness and cognitive reframing, can help individuals manage stress and prevent burnout. This supports sustained effort and productivity.