PERSONAL LEADERSHIP PROGRAM

Search Inside Yourself

The emotional intelligence program created at Google to help people at every level lead themselves with focus, resilience, and clarity.
Smiling professional in glasses on a purple background, representing the Search Inside Yourself personal leadership program

Performance starts with leading yourself

Rapid change, AI, and shifting workplace cultures are raising the pressure on everyone, and people are expected to adapt quickly, stay focused, and deliver results.

Originally created at Google and later becoming a bestselling book, the Search Inside Yourself (SIY) program offers an innovative approach to self-leadership. Using neuroscience and proven practices of attention training, SIY helps employees manage their own attention, emotions, and reactions, so they can stay focused, resilient, and clear under pressure.

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Cover of Search Inside Yourself by Chade-Meng Tan, the bestselling book behind the emotional intelligence program created at Google
Audience
People at every level, from individual contributors to senior leaders
Length
8-week learning journey,
flexible options
Live learning
16 hours
Cohort size
24 to 30 participants

Before and After: How People Change

Search Inside Yourself helps people understand how their attention and emotions shape their performance, and gives them practical tools to manage both.

Personal leadership shift 1 of 6

From scattered attention to sustained focus

Participants learn attention practices that help them concentrate longer with fewer distractions.

Personal leadership shift 2 of 6

From reacting on autopilot to responding with intention

Participants learn to pause when emotions run high and choose how they respond.

Personal leadership shift 3 of 6

From vague feelings to clear self-awareness

Participants learn to notice and name their emotions and triggers as they happen.

Personal leadership shift 4 of 6

From stress overload to bouncing back faster

Participants learn self-management strategies to recover from setbacks and adapt to change.

Personal leadership shift 5 of 6

From quick assumptions to real empathy

Participants learn to understand other perspectives before reacting.

Personal leadership shift 6 of 6

From one-time insight to daily habit

Participants practice daily so new skills become part of how they work.

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what learners say about SIY

Senior Engineer

Google

It was one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever done.

Barry Margerum

Former Chief Strategy Officer, Plantronics

I highly recommend SIY to anyone looking to improve the way their team works together, enhance their innovative thinking and clarity, reduce stress, improve general wellbeing, manage difficult conversations, and be generally more at peace.

Participant

Software Design Company

The class was very well constructed and clear and it provided very actionable practices and tools which can be used used and I already have in my first day back on the job. I really liked the clarity and foundational principles but with a strong focus on practice. I felt like it has the potential to be a breakthrough in behavior change.

Healthcare Participant

University Healthcare Organization

I realized that in between a trigger or stimulus and my response, there lies my power.

Staff Member

Top U.S. Research University

I can be a much more productive and effective employe if I am working from a place of organized clarity.

Sian Cameron

Qantas

I’m a change manager and leaders need this stuff before they have the ability to manage change well for their people. So ALL leaders need to go.

Staff Member

Top U.S. Research University

Altogether, this experience helped me see more clearly how I want to show up and the kind of contribution I hope to make in my work.

Participant

Technology company

The practices of mindful listening helped me realize I am very often trying to rush through conversations instead of really sitting quietly and being in the moment.

Leader participant

Multinational Energy Company

Compassion exercise helped me to look at my colleagues as at fellow human beings that also has same challenges as I do, also want to be happy as I do, etc, instead of seeing them as competitors.

Staff Member

Top U.S. Research University

I'm able to ask myself: "what's most important now?" when I feel overwhelmed at work and genuinely inhabit someone else's point of view when I might've previously interpreted a conflict personally.

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Bring SIY to your organization

What's Different About This Program

Here are five ways Search Inside Yourself differs from other emotional intelligence programs.
Speaker presenting at Google, where the Search Inside Yourself emotional intelligence program was created in 2007
SIY began at Google in 2007, when an engineering leader brought together experts in neuroscience, mindfulness, emotional intelligence, and business to help colleagues manage pressure and work better together. Participants saw their performance improve, and the program grew into its own organization and a bestselling book.
Researcher studying brain scans on a screen, representing the neuroscience behind Search Inside Yourself
The program combines neuroscience, mindfulness practices, and practical tools people can apply right away to situations at work.
Man sitting with eyes closed during an attention training practice that builds emotional intelligence
This program uniquely relies on attention training - sometimes referred to as mindfulness - to activate emotional intelligence. Participants can use simple techniques to help them develop emotional awareness, manage their emotions, and find focus, even under stress.
Colleagues of different ages and roles talking in a meeting, showing SIY is designed for every level
Because SIY focuses on leading yourself, it works for individual contributors, managers, and senior leaders alike. People across the organization end up with a shared language and set of practices.
Employee wearing a headset pausing at her desk to refocus, a daily practice from Search Inside Yourself
After the live sessions, a 28-day challenge has participants practice for about 15 minutes a day, so the skills become part of their routine rather than something they learned once.
1. Created at Google
2. Grounded in neuroscience
3. Uses attention training to activate emotional intelligence
4. Designed for every level
5. Integrates into daily work
Bring SIY to your organization

5 Reasons to Choose Search Inside Yourself

Here are five ways Search Inside Yourself differs from other emotional intelligence programs.

1. Created at Google

SIY began at Google in 2007, when an engineering leader brought together experts in neuroscience, mindfulness, emotional intelligence, and business to help colleagues manage pressure and work better together. Participants saw their performance improve, and the program grew into its own organization and a bestselling book.

2. Grounded in neuroscience

The program combines neuroscience, mindfulness practices, and practical tools people can apply right away to situations at work.

3. Uses attention training to activate emotional intelligence

This program uniquely relies on attention training - sometimes referred to as mindfulness - to activate emotional intelligence. Participants can use simple techniques to help them develop emotional awareness, manage their emotions, and find focus, even under stress.

4. Designed for every level

Because SIY focuses on leading yourself, it works for individual contributors, managers, and senior leaders alike. People across the organization end up with a shared language and set of practices.

5. Integrates into daily work

After the live sessions, a 28-day challenge has participants practice for about 15 minutes a day, so the skills become part of their routine rather than something they learned once.

Results from SIY Participants

More than 100,000 people have taken Search Inside Yourself. Feedback from 14,000 participants shows noticeable and long-term results on how they experience work.

69%
felt better able to reduce stress after the program, up from 44% before
Source: SIY Global participant feedback surveys.
61%
reported being able to bounce back from an emotionally challenging situation, up from 43% before
Source: SIY Global participant feedback surveys.
71%
noticed a greater ability to focus and return to the present moment, up from 48% before
Source: SIY Global participant feedback surveys.
93% of Search Inside Yourself participants surveyed would recommend the program

After delivering the program to over 100,000 people globally we are proud that 93% of participants surveyed would recommend our program. 

An 8-Week Blended Learning Journey

Search Inside Yourself is offered as a blended learning program. Explore a suggested learning journey below. Delivery can flex to fit your organization's needs.

  • Pre-assessment

  • Live instructor-led learning

  • 28-day challenge

  • Capstone session

  • Post-assessment

Pre-assessment

The SIY pre-assessment gives each participant a baseline and helps the facilitator tailor the live sessions.

Time: ~15 minutes

Live instructor-led learning

Facilitated sessions totaling 16 hours, typically delivered as two full days. All sessions can run virtually or in person, and the format can be adjusted to fit your organization's schedule.

Time: 16 hours total

28-day challenge

Participants practice a short daily exercise for 28 days to turn what they learned into habit.

Time: ~15 minutes per day

Capstone session

A live session to reflect on the challenge, share progress, and plan how to keep practicing.

Time: 1 hour

Post-assessment

The post-assessment shows how each participant has grown, both for personal insight and to support program reporting toward business goals.

Time: ~15 minutes

Bring SIY to your organization

An 8-Week Blended Learning Journey

Search Inside Yourself is offered as a blended learning program. Explore a suggested learning journey below. Delivery can flex to fit your organization's needs.

  • Pre-assessment

    The SIY pre-assessment gives each participant a baseline and helps the facilitator tailor the live sessions.

    Time: ~15 minutes

  • Live instructor-led learning

    Facilitated sessions totaling 16 hours, typically delivered as two full days. All sessions can run virtually or in person, and the format can be adjusted to fit your organization's schedule.

    Time: 16 hours total

  • 28-day challenge

    Participants practice a short daily exercise for 28 days to turn what they learned into habit.

    Time: ~15 minutes per day

  • Capstone session

    A live session to reflect on the challenge, share progress, and plan how to keep practicing.

    Time: 1 hour

  • Post-assessment

    The post-assessment shows how each participant has grown, both for personal insight and to support program reporting toward business goals.

    Time: ~15 minutes

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LICENSING

License SIY content for maximum flexibility

The most flexible way to bring Search Inside Yourself to your organization is through an SIY Global license. A license gives you unlimited use of our full suite of EQ-powered leadership development content, so you can offer consistent programs across every level and department and combine our content with your own.

Explore a license

 
Frequently asked questions about Search Inside Yourself
1. Who is Search Inside Yourself designed for?

People at every level, from individual contributors to senior leaders, who want to build the self-awareness, focus, and resilience that strong performance depends on. Many leaders take it as a foundation for personal leadership.

2. How is Search Inside Yourself different from Leading with Emotional Dynamics™?

Leading with Emotional Dynamics™ is designed for leaders, focuses on leading others, and runs in a shorter format. Search Inside Yourself is for people at every level and puts more emphasis on mindfulness and leading yourself. It's also a bigger time commitment, with 16 hours of live sessions over an 8-week learning journey.

Explore Leading with Emotional Dynamics
3. Who facilitates the program?

You can choose. SIY Global's expert facilitators can deliver the live sessions for your organization, or you can train your own internal facilitators to deliver the program through our Facilitator Certification program.

Learn about facilitator certification
4. Can the program be delivered virtually?

Yes. Every part of the program can run virtually or in person. The 16 hours of live sessions are typically delivered as two full days, though the format can be adjusted to fit your schedule. The 28-day challenge and assessments are completed on participants' own time.

5. Can the program be tailored to our organization?

Yes. We regularly tailor the program to fit an organization's context. That can include scenarios that reflect your industry and culture, a different program length, or a different cohort size. Talk with us about what you need, and we'll shape the program around it.

6. How much does the program cost?

Pricing varies based on the number of participants and cohorts, the delivery format, facilitation, and any tailoring. Talk with us about your goals, and we'll put together options that fit your organization.

7. Do coaches receive ICF credits for Search Inside Yourself?

Yes. Search Inside Yourself is approved by the International Coaching Federation, and coaches receive 13.5 Continuing Coach Education (CCE) credits for attending.

8. Where did Search Inside Yourself come from?

The program started at Google in 2007, when an engineering leader worked with experts in neuroscience, mindfulness, emotional intelligence, and business to create it for Google employees. The name is a nod to Google's search origins. It became so popular that it spun off into its own organization and a bestselling book.

9. Is Search Inside Yourself a mindfulness program?

Mindfulness - also called attention training - is one part of the approach. The goal is to help participants learn how to pause, notice how their attention has wandered and refocus, especially in situations that are emotionally activating at work.

The program combines it with neuroscience and practical tools people can apply right away at work, with the goal of building emotional intelligence and performance.

Bring SIY to your organization