Shift

Managing Your Emotions—So They Don't Manage You

De: Ethan Kross

Narrado por: Ethan Kross

“A revolutionary guide to mastering your emotional life.”—Charles Duhigg

“Brilliant, engaging, and deeply insightful.”—Lisa Damour

“A blueprint for navigating the emotional curveballs that life throws at us every day.”—The New York Times

INSTANT NATIONAL BESTSELLER • One of Oprah Daily’s Best Self-Help Books for Personal Growth in 2025, Next Big Idea Club’s Highly Anticipated Books, and Adam Grant’s 10 New Books to Feed Your Mind

A myth-busting, science-based guide that addresses the timeless question of how to manage your emotional life using tools you already possess—from the bestselling author of Chatter.

Whether it’s anxiety about going to the doctor, boiling rage when we’re stuck in traffic, or devastation after a painful break-up, our lives are filled with situations that send us spiraling. But as difficult as our emotions can be, they are also a superpower. Far from being “good” or “bad,” emotions are information. When they’re activated in the right ways and at the right time, they function like an immune system, alerting us to our surroundings, telling us how to react to a situation, and helping us make the right choices.

But how do we make our emotions work for us rather than against us? Acclaimed psychologist Dr. Ethan Kross has devoted his scientific career to answering this question. In Shift, he dispels common myths—for instance, that avoidance is always toxic or that we should always strive to live in the moment—and provides a new framework for shifting our emotions so they don’t take over our lives.

Shift weaves groundbreaking research with riveting stories of people struggling and succeeding to manage their emotions—from a mother whose fear prompted her to make a spur-of-the-moment decision that would save her daughter’s life mid-flight to a nuclear code-carrying Navy SEAL who learned how to embrace both joy and pain during a hellish training activity. Dr. Kross spotlights a wide array of tools that we already have access to—in our bodies and minds, our relationships with other people, and the cultures and physical spaces we inhabit—and shows us how to harness them to be healthier and more successful.

Filled with actionable advice, cutting-edge research, and riveting stories, Shift puts the power back into our hands, so we can control our emotions without them controlling us—and help others do the same.

©2025 Ethan Kross (P)2025 Random House Audio

Reseñas de la Crítica

“[Shift] puts the problem of overreaction in a new light.”—The New Yorker

“Illuminating . . . this will be a boon to readers looking to take better charge of their inner lives.”—Publishers Weekly, starred review

“This book does much more than make sense of emotions—it breaks new ground on how to manage them. Ethan Kross has done something remarkable: he’s written a page-turner that’s grounded in science and filled with practical insights. If you think you can’t control what you feel, he’s about to make you think twice.”—Adam Grant, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Think Again and host of the podcast Re:Thinking

Tools

When I listen to an audiobook, I have a couple of expectations. One is a like a good narrator and I think the author is the best person to do that if they are able. This book was narrated well. I also like to pick up a good tool or two to put in my toolbox. I picked up several in this book. While there’s no shocking panacea or aha moment, nor were there comments that are gonna absolutely change your life, there are plenty of good tools. If we can just implement one or two things in our experience, I think it’s worth it. I enjoyed this book and didn’t find it laborious whatsoever. Learning to regulate your emotions is now more important than it’s ever been. I think Ethan Kross is a very wise man and will learn more as he goes and I’m sure they’ll be more books coming.

Solutions

Personal and comprehensive from beginning to end plenty of people and research focused on important issues and delivering on solutions

Emotions are contagious- we can make a positive difference when we SHIFT!

Loved this book! A great reminder with real-life examples, science and research that we have the power to shift our emotional state. It’s ok to feel a variety of emotions- it’s what we do when we have them that matters. A great book for leaders and entrepreneurs who are faced with their own emotions and those of others everyday. Having this book as your guide to SHIFT can be game changing in life and in business!

Practical tips, great stories and examples

Highly recommend this book, as well as Chatter by the same author. Both can be life changing if you’re looking for a roadmap to control your thoughts and want to
Learn how to shift your perspective, and therefore, your mood.

The toolkit I never knew that I needed

tl;dr – Get this book if you want practical tools and compelling stories that cover how to direct your emotions for good.

I'm about 75% through the book and felt compelled to write this review. It dives deep into issues that plague society. You could read a book on happiness, stress management, or countless other subjects, but this one has quickly become a top 5 recommendation for me. As someone who experiences emotions quite intensely 😉, I know what it’s like to deal with big, scary, sad, lasting, and overwhelming feelings.

What I love most about this book—after reading over 50 self-help books—is that it actually provides tools to handle emotional challenges. The blend of storytelling, science, and personal insights makes it engaging. I won’t claim that every idea is flawless, but the strategies for managing emotions are truly game-changing.

I’m especially excited to apply techniques like distancing language (which I was familiar with for performance anxiety but never considered for all emotions), time shifting, music, attention shifting, and more in my daily life to combat anxiety, worry, and stress.

I also look forward to embracing my emotions more fully, allowing me to connect more deeply and empathetically by tapping into past experiences.

There are so many golden nuggets in this book that I had never encountered before, such as:

- You can't control when emotions start, but you can control their direction and intensity.
- Emotions act like glue, binding past experiences to present ones (or something like that! 😊).
- Reframing things you do have control over can actually be harmful in certain contexts.

I hope this book helps you on your journey, just as I hope it will for me and my family.

Been waiting for this book

Extremely helpful and exactly what I was expecting. Humans need to listen to this book if they want to understand what they’re capable of actually controlling.

Toolbox you need

Loved different approaches described to handle our emotions and stay in control. Truly a mix and match approach to find what works for each individual.

BORING

The only thing I would recommend listening or reading this book for would be to fall asleep at night