recommendation
Identity

Why You Feel What You Feel

Dr. Alan Watkins on Emotional Intelligence
Alan Watkins
20 MIN
Watch

Listen to this article
0:00 / 0:00

“Do I have my emotions or do my emotions have me? Have I graduated past the level of emotional intelligence that most people get stuck in? That, of a nine-year-old? Is it possible to live a life of freedom inside of a clarified understanding of where I end and others begin? Do I live with an internal or external locus (command centre) of control? Could it be that I’ve been surrendered to life as a victim where I could otherwise become dignified agent in my own and others wellbeing?”

Each of these questions are approached and answered in this timely reflection from renowned neuroscientist, Dr. Allan Watkins. If you’re seeking a more responsible approach to your days, consider journeying with Dr. Watkins through a map of the world of emotion and the developmental phases that mark it. In this talk, you’ll learn how to distinguish between emotions (energy in motion) and feelings (the subjective experience of that energy that we label with the terms, ‘sad’, or ‘startled’, for example). 

In a world of mounting tension and violence, the need for emotional intelligence—to ‘keep’ oneself from merely becoming part of the problem—has never been greater. Take in this cogent lecture and learn tools for mapping out an understanding of how more of the reflexes your brain and body can become chosen responses that can begin to serve you and the people you love. Settled habits that can benefit us, as opposed to unplanned reflexes that imprison us. 

Get our latest resources to connect deeper with God, in your inbox.

Thank you for subscribing.

Watch your inbox, we’ve got some encouragement coming your way.
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form, please refresh and try again.
Related resources
6.5 MIN
Watch
recommendation
Identity Crisis: Why Defining Yourself by Your Career Is a Problem
One way to develop a healthier relationship with your career may be to visualize its end.
4.5 MIN
Watch
recommendation
Lean Into Imposter Syndrome, Don't Give In to It
Why do ambitious “strivers” so often feel they haven’t truly earned their success?
2 MIN
Watch
recommendation
The Committee
All people have worldviews but not all are equal.
2 MIN
Watch
recommendation
Without The Title, Who Are You?
Our careers will always be temporary. Who are we without it?
8 min
Read
recommendation
You belong—always have
An exploration of loneliness as a profound human condition that reveals our essential need for love, connection, and relationship, showing that we are inherently made for intimacy, not isolation.
13 min
Watch
recommendation
Discovery of self-possession
Have you ever longed to feel really settled in who you are and what you have to offer? Walk through this exploration in how we come to self-possession.
1 min
Watch
recommendation
Becoming the man God made me to be
Sundays used to blur by in bars and on couches—comfort numbing conviction. Will felt stuck, disconnected from God, others, even himself. But Exodus cracked something open. In the quiet and detachment, he began to feel again—to listen. What he found wasn’t just discipline. It was a deeper hunger for Christ—and real freedom.
19 MIN
Watch
recommendation
How to become a saint
The call to sainthood is for all of us, learn how to walk the path with purpose.
9 min
Read
recommendation
Noticing greed, gluttony and lust in my life
This reflection explores the quiet traps of daily distractions and spiritual apathy known as acedia. It invites us to honestly examine how seemingly harmless habits—like shopping or screen time—can mask deeper vices, and encourages relying on the Holy Spirit to cultivate virtue and reclaim the abundant life Jesus promises.