“Sisu is a Finnish word for determination and intestinal fortitude in the face of extreme adversity. Gentle power is to apply sisu with both heart and reason.”
These are the concepts that we are diving into on this weeks session on the show with Elisbat Lahti. Some of you may remember Elisabet from the first season of the show where we unpacked the Finnish concept of Sisu. On the show today, we talk about why we should apply the attitude of gentle power into our lives and conduct, and the impact on humanity when we do so.

Elisbet says that power is fundamental in our lives―we express it in every conversation, relationship, and choice we make. All too often, we equate force and domination with power, while gentleness and compassion are considered “soft” or “weak.” The destructive nature of this skewed perspective has never been more obvious, yet there is reason to hope.
Elisabet is an international presenter on topics related to positive psychology, courage, leadership, and high performance. She is also a transformational mindset coach supporting individuals who are committed to cultivating compassionate leadership and integrity in their daily lives.

She conducted her PhD research for the Finland-based Aalto University School of Science and Technology in which she is pioneered the research on the ancient Finnish construct of sisu, which denotes courage and determination in the face of extreme adversity and the ability to unlock hidden inner strength when it is needed (find the research paper on embodied fortitude here and its press release here). Elisabet´s work has been featured by The New Yorker, Business Insider, Scientific American, BBC, and Forbes among others. Elisabet has given talks at Fortune500 companies such as Facebook and Salesforce, as well as Stanford University, The International World Congress on Positive Psychology, The Consciousness Summit, TEDx, and Singularity University at NASA Ames in Mountain View, California, where she also studied futurism and exponential technologies while attending their Global Solutions Programme.

Elisabet has a master's degree in social psychology from the University of Tampere in Finland and in a master's degree in applied positive psychology from the University of Pennsylvania, USA. She is a former student of Dr Martin Seligman and began her master thesis work on sisu was advised by research professor Dr Angela Duckworth in 2013.


Notable moments in this episode:
(16:49) - how does power affect men from women?
(36:06) - why does gentle power need to be embraced today?
(56:58) - Elizabet’s #1 piece of advice to develop your sisu

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Homepage: https://www.sisulab.com

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