Understanding Emotions and Moods

How do you feel when you are driving a car and are halted by a police officer? You are in class and receive a poor grade on an exam? A favorite pet passes away? You check e-mail and discover that you are being offered a job interview? A good friend walks right by without speaking? A parent or sibling or child loses his job? Or, you get this SMS from a new acquaintance: “Ur gr8!”?

These examples show how what happens to us draws out “feelings” of many forms, such as happy or sad, angry or pleased. These feelings constitute what scholars call affect, the range of emotions and moods that people experience in their life context.¹ Affects have important implications not only for our lives in general but also our behavior at work.² Lisa Druxman, featured in the opening example, might have allowed her frustration at having no time to hit the gym turn into a negative affect toward her work and personal life. Instead, she took the initiative and developed a series of exercises she could perform while walking with her baby. She then took it a step further and started Stroller Strides, a company whose franchises provide moms with a chance to succeed—with their career and their families.