Exercises: Managing emotions and uncertainty

Name three common emotions when carrying out a project (for example: fear, enthusiasm, frustration) and explain for each one whether it helps or hinders you, and at what stage of the project it usually appears.

Explain the difference between risk and uncertainty using this example: running a lemonade stand (a) knowing that out of every $10$ cups you prepare you usually sell $8$, versus (b) having no idea whether local people like lemonade. In which of the two cases would you be making decisions with more data?

The diagram shows the cycle that converts a mistake into an improvement, but one of the stages is covered with a question mark.

1. a) State which stage is missing between 'Error' and 'Learn', and explain what is done in it.
2. b) Describe a real mistake (from studying, sports, or a project) and go through the entire cycle with it.

Explain what frustration is and how it differs from sadness. Give an example of a school project where frustration appears and describe one reaction that makes it worse and another that puts it to good use.

Match each thought with the emotion that usually goes with it — fear, euphoria, frustration or calm — and explain which one would help you most before speaking in public: (a) 'I'm bound to forget everything and they'll laugh'; (b) 'this is going to be a total success, no need to rehearse'; (c) 'I've tried three times and I can't do it, I'm a disaster'; (d) 'I've rehearsed, I may make mistakes and it will still be fine'.

Explain in your own words what tolerance of uncertainty is and give two examples from your life: one situation where you tolerate it well and one where you struggle (waiting for a grade, not knowing whether people will come to your stall, starting a new game). What is the difference between the two?

Distinguish between a mistake and a failure with a school example: handing in a poor practical assignment in the first week versus dropping the subject. Explain why calling an ordinary mistake a 'failure' makes it harder to get back up and carry on.

Name three physical signs of nerves before speaking in public (racing heart, sweaty hands, shaky voice) and explain what happens to those signs if you interpret them as 'danger' versus if you interpret them as 'my body is switching on to perform'.

Your team must decide today on the ticket prices for the school concert without knowing how many people will attend. Explain what it means to make decisions with incomplete information and describe two reasonable ways to reduce uncertainty before deciding (a quick survey, checking attendance from previous years, advance sales, etc.).

Tomorrow you are presenting the project to the whole class and you feel nervous: racing heart, cold hands, wanting to go last. Describe two concrete techniques for managing those nerves (breathing exercises, preparation, reframing self-talk) and explain why they work.

The first prototype of the bike rack bent on the very first test. The team says: 'we've wasted two weeks'. Counter this with arguments: what exactly have they gained, what would have happened if the flaw appeared at the fair, and how should they record what they have learnt?

Your team has invested $40\ \text{€}$ and three weeks in a smoothie stall and the fair is cancelled because of rain. There is anger, an urge to throw it all away, and one teammate in tears. Describe what you would do over the next $24$ hours to manage the blow as a team: what you don't decide today, how you talk about it, and which three questions you will ask yourselves tomorrow to recover the materials and the learning.

Before setting the price of the theatre tickets, the team argues heatedly and in the end decides 'whatever' just to get it over with. Explain how anger and haste degrade a decision, and propose a simple protocol for deciding in the heat of the moment: pause, minimum data on the table, reversible option first. Apply it to the pricing case.

Jana rehearses her presentation and it comes out perfectly at home; in front of the class she freezes. Explain what role the body's activation plays in both contexts and design a three-session plan to train the presentation in conditions increasingly similar to the real one (in front of one friend, in front of five, with someone interrupting). Why does this gradual exposure work?

The team won the district entrepreneurship competition and now, on the next project, nobody wants to try new ideas: 'let's repeat exactly what worked.' Analyse what emotion may be holding the team back after success and explain why success can also become a trap if it turns the team conservative. Propose an activity to recover ambition without losing what was learned.

Your school app gets its first ten ratings: eight good ones and two very harsh ones. The team only talks about the two bad ones and considers redoing everything. Explain what emotional bias is at work (the disproportionate weight of the negative), how you would read the criticism with distance (what exactly are they asking for, how many people are asking for it) and what you would reply to the two harsh reviews.

Your group's jam stall sold $4$ jars at the school fair when you were expecting to sell $40$. There is disappointment, embarrassment, and a feeling of not wanting to try again.

1. a) Analyse which emotions are at play and how they could spoil decisions over the coming days.
2. b) Propose a three-step plan to turn failure into useful learning for the next fair.

You are offered two options: (a) keep a guaranteed $10\ \text{€}$, or (b) flip a coin: if you win you get $22\ \text{€}$ and if you lose you get $0\ \text{€}$. Option (b) is worth $11\ \text{€}$ on average, which is more than option (a), yet almost everyone chooses (a). Explain what emotion accounts for this decision, and argue whether you think it is a good or bad advisor when making financial decisions.

Design a 'decision log' for your team: a simple table with the columns you would fill in for each important decision (what we decided, with what information, how we felt, what happened in the end). Explain how this log helps detect decisions made out of fear or euphoria, and provide a completed example.

The school market team has to decide whether to change its star product just two weeks before the fair: the macarons are selling badly in the pre-sale, but switching to brownies means admitting that the first product 'has failed'.

1. a) Analyse which emotions push towards keeping the macarons even though the data says otherwise (pride, fear of looking foolish, cost already invested) and what continuing to invest to avoid admitting the loss is called.
2. b) Write how you would present the change to the team so that nobody feels singled out and the decision is made with data.

Your team must choose between two stands for the district fair: a safe, small, cheap one ($30\ \text{€}$, neighbourhood audience), or a big one in the city centre ($120\ \text{€}$, ten times the audience, but if it rains hardly anyone will come by and there is no covered plan B).

1. a) Explain what role fear and ambition play in this decision and why neither should decide on its own.
2. b) Design a reasoned decision: what data you would gather before choosing (weather forecast, capacity, cost per expected customer) and which middle option could reduce the risk without giving up the opportunity.

After failing the first project presentation, Noa says: 'I'm just not cut out for this, numbers are my thing.' Her teacher replies: 'you failed one presentation, you haven't discovered who you are.'

1. a) Analyse the difference between the two sentences: what Noa's language does to her identity and why that leap (from 'it went badly' to 'I'm not cut out for it') is so damaging for entrepreneurship.
2. b) Write three honest rephrasings Noa could say to herself and design a small first step that gives her back a sense of control.

Two teams sell the same thing at the fair. Team A celebrates every small sale and notes down what works; team B only looks at what is left to reach its $100\ \text{€}$ goal and every hour without sales sinks it further. By the end of the day, A had sold $80\ \text{€}$ and B, $45\ \text{€}$.

1. a) Explain how each team's emotional management may have influenced the result (attitude towards customers, decisions at midday, group energy).
2. b) Propose three concrete rituals team B could copy for the next fair (a log of small wins, a ten-minute pause, rest shifts) and justify each one.

'Emotions are the enemy of good decisions: you must decide with reason alone.' Discuss this statement: explain what emotions contribute to decisions (detecting what matters to us, energy to act, warning of risks), what problems they cause when they take over, and propose a practical rule for your team: when to decide calmly, when to listen to the emotion, and what to do when emotion and data contradict each other. Illustrate it with an example from a school project.

Unit challenge. Lead the change: a motivation and negotiation plan in the face of economic uncertainty.

Imagine you lead a team affected by the economic situation. Design a reasoned proposal to improve their work environment and resilience by following these phases:

1. Collecting real data: Look up the youth unemployment rate or the current CPI (e.g. $3,2\,\%$) on the INE website. Then, survey 3 people around you, asking them to rate their level of motivation and their perception of economic uncertainty from 1 to 5.

2. Emotional diagnosis: Tabulate the responses, calculate the mean of each variable, and describe which emotions predominate and what communication barriers they generate in their daily lives.

3. Strategy and negotiation: Design a leadership proposal with 3 intrinsic motivation techniques and a brief integrative (win-win) negotiation protocol, based on assertiveness and active listening, to resolve a team conflict caused by such uncertainty.

4. Final product: Submit a brief report (one page) with the data table, the emotional diagnosis, and your reasoned intervention proposal.

Assessment criteria:

• Accuracy in collecting, tabulating, and interpreting data from the INE and the survey.

• Coherent integration of assertive communication, motivation, and leadership skills.

• Feasibility and constructive approach in managing emotions in the face of uncertainty.