The Cartesian Hangover in Modern Leadership

We continue to act as though rationality sits above emotion—as if good leadership means suppressing feeling in favor of logic, objectivity, and control. This assumption runs deep in management culture, even as neuroscience has quietly dismantled it.

One of the most haunting illustrations comes from 1848, with the case of Phineas Gage. After a railroad accident drove an iron rod through his skull, Gage survived—but he was no longer himself. His intelligence remained intact. His personality, judgment, and social awareness did not. He could think, but he could no longer decide well.

 Over a century later, Antonio Damasio would explain why. In Descartes’ Error, he showed that emotion is not the enemy of reason—it is its necessary partner. Without emotional signaling, decision-making collapses. Logic alone cannot guide human behavior.

And yet, many leadership models still operate as if emotions are noise rather than data.

In complex, high-pressure environments—healthcare, education, organizations in constant change—leaders are not failing because they feel too much. They struggle because they are often asked to lead without emotional integration. We train cognition while neglecting the very system that gives cognition meaning.

If leadership today requires anything, it is not more control—but deeper emotional literacy.

I explore this intersection of neuroscience, leadership, and the myth of rationality more fully on the Crucial Leaders blog. If you’re interested in how emotional intelligence is not “soft,” but foundational to effective leadership, I invite you to read more.