Dear Visitor,

Here is a term you've probably never heard of before--"cathexis." It is a psychiatric term originally coined by Freud. I first read about cathexis in Scott Peck's famous book, "The Road Less Traveled." Peck describes cathexis as the process by which the people, places and things we freely invest in become part of us. If we freely invest in our employees, for example, they literally become part of our identity, or sense-of-self, and we subsequently defend them as though they were part of us. Here is an article that I wrote about the mysterious process of cathexis. Let me know what you think.

Best Regards,

Paul Herr
Author of Primal Management

Cathexis--The Most Important Word You've Never Heard Of!

Management theorist like Fredrick Taylor and Alfred Sloan promoted a cool, rational approach to management that has held sway for over 100 years. Taylor, the father of scientific management, was a mechanical engineer by training who sought to create efficient, machine-like workplaces. Alfred Sloan, another engineer-turned-theorist, wrote, “loneliness, distance and formality” are the CEO’s duty and in business you need to be “rational, not personal.”