When you get angry, count to ten. You can't change your spouse. Use "I" statements. These are things we hear constantly hear, but how do they work? What's the science behind it? In this episode, Kurt Nelson, PhD shows us how humans work, why we behave in certain ways, and what we can do to make the change we really want.  
Kurt Nelson, PhD., is a sought-after consultant, speaker, and recognized leader in human motivation and behavior change. For over 20 years, Kurt has worked with global companies to apply behavioral science principles to drive change in their organizations.
He is the founder and president of The Lantern Group, a behavioral change, and communication agency.  He also is the co-founder, with Tim Houlihan, of the Behavioral Grooves and Weekly Grooves podcasts, where they interview leading academic and business executives from around the world and explore how they apply behavioral science to their work and lives.
All his work focuses on understanding ways to positively influence how people behave.
Kurt's recent work has focused on understanding how people make a purposeful change.  He is one of the leading experts in the world on the 4-Drive Model of Motivation and how it is implemented inside organizations.   Specifically, his focus has been on understanding the drivers of change, increasing the effectiveness of reward programs for sales representatives, maximizing the impact of extrinsic rewards, and developing behavioral effectiveness blueprints that align behaviors with strategy.
Although much of his work has focused on the pharmaceutical industry, he has vast experience in medical device, telecommunications, finance, non-profits, and automotive as well as working with a large number of different companies from around the world.
He has spoken at conferences around the world including Malaysia, Kuwait, Mexico, Canada, and the U.S. on topics ranging from the psychology of gamification to increase employee engagement, to driving behavior change.
Kurt grew up in the midwest and earned his undergraduate and MBA from the University of Iowa and his Ph.D. in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from Capella University.  Kurt geeks out about reading (behavioral economics, history, psychology, and fantasy genres), traveling (every state in the US — now working on countries), biking, canoeing, skiing and spending time with family and friends at their cabin.
You can reach Kurt at kurt@lanterngroup.com or on twitter @whatmotivates
www.behavioralgrooves.com
www.weeklygrooves.com
www.lanterngroup.com
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