Illustration by Fanny Luor

The mind at work

The Mind at Work: Lisa Feldman Barrett on the metabolism of emotion

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Published on February 10, 2021

I’m so mad at my boss! Even just reading these words might get your blood pressure pumping and set your head wagging in honest indignation.

The brain is not so much a singular ‘organ’ as a metabolic process. 

Research has shown that when it comes to emotion, it’s very easy to lead the witness.

“Meaning isn’t an evaluation in any kind of deliberate propositional sense, it's an action plan. And you can change those action plans.” —Lisa Feldman Barrett

Like a surfer, your brain is always trying to stay just ahead of the wave of sensations as they crest. Fall too far behind and you get walloped.

“If you take a very embodied view of the mind, then really, you're being pickled in the minds of other people.” —Lisa Feldman Barrett