Emotion

- Emotions play a critical role in decision making. … But it's only been in the last few decades … that science has shed some light on exactly how that works. … There's a lot of psychological research … showing that human beings make subconscious … emotional decisions in one place in the brain, … and then justify those decisions more logically … and rationally in another place in the brain. … So, while it may sound counterintuitive, … we need emotions to make good decisions. … And while facts and figures and logical arguments … aren't very good at reaching people emotionally, … stories seem uniquely adept at it. … One of my favorite definitions of the word story … is by novelist E.M. Forster. … He said that, … "A story was nothing more than a fact plus an emotion." … And he gave a brilliantly simple example. … He said, If I were to tell you, … "The king died, and then the queen died," … well, that wouldn't be a story would it? … But if I told you, … "The king died and then the queen died of grief." …