But more significantly, our conventional view of psychological health is, essentially, that of a well-adapted, well-functioning child in relation to parents or parent figures. Or, a sibling who interacts appropriately in a social context with other siblings. Either way, that's a person functioning within and adapted to a world shaped and run by "parents," psychologically speaking.

That is, we pretty much equate healthy psychological functioning with effective management or resolution of child- or sibling-based conflicts. For example, resolving and managing such child-based conflicts as impulse control; narcissistic or grandiose attitudes; and traumas around attachment, from indifference, abandonment, abuse, or parenting that otherwise damages your adult capacity for intimacy or trusting relationships.

Healthy resolution of sibling-type conflicts includes learning effective ways to compete with other "siblings" at work or in your intimate relationships. Managing your fears of success or disapproval. Containing passive-aggressive, manipulative or other self-undermining tendencies. And finding ways to relate towards people whose approval, acceptance and reward you need or crave.

It's no surprise, then, that many people feel and behave like children in a grown-up world. Examples permeate popular culture. A good one is the popular TV show, "The Office." It often portrays the eruption of these sibling-type conflicts, as the workers act out their resentments or compete with one another to win the favor of office manager Michael - another grown-up child who's self-serving and clueless about his own competitive motives and insecurity.

Unconscious child-type conflicts are often visible within intimate relationships and family life, as well. You can see, for example, fears of abandonment in a man who demands constant attention and assurance that he's loved; or low-self worth in a woman who's unconsciously attracted to partners who dominate or manipulate her.

Of course it's critical that you learn to become aware of and manage effectively whatever emotional damage you bring from your early experiences into adulthood. We all have some. That's a good starting point for adult psychological health, but it's not sufficient. A well-adapted member of a community of other "children" and "siblings" within a psychological world of "parents" is not the same thing as a healthy adult. Especially not within today's interconnected, unpredictable world.

To describe what a healthy adult would feel, think and do in the current environment requires answering questions like these:
How can you maintain the mental focus to keep your career skills sharp and stay on a successful path at work when you suddenly acquire a new boss who wants to take things in a new direction? Or if your company is acquired by another, or goes out of business?

• How can you best respond, mentally, if you have a new baby and a drop in family income at the same time that globalization sidetracks your career?
• How can you handle the pressure to work longer or do more business travel when your spouse faces the same demands?
• What's the healthiest way to keep your relationship alive with fresh energy - or avoid the temptation of an affair?
• And how do you deal emotionally with the threat of terrorism - always lurking in the background of your mind - while enjoying life at the same time?

We now live within a world where the only constant is change, and where a new requirement is being able to compete and collaborate with everyone from everywhere about almost everything.

Doing that with self-awareness and knowledge of how to grow and develop into a full human being - that's the new path to adult psychological health. But you need to know where to find that path.

If you confine your view of psychological health to good management of your conflicts - the old 20th Century view - that will keep you too focused on self-interest, especially power, money, possessions. And that will take you down a dead-end. Focusing on self-interest is an ineffective strategy in today's interconnected, non-equilibrium world. That strategy will leave you feeling like a vulnerable child rather than an adult when forces outside your control disrupt your world and your self-centered goals.

Of course, we have to take care of ourselves. But the paradox is that you can't do that very well, today, just by trying to look out for yourself. A successful and psychologically healthy adult subordinates purely self-interest to a larger, common good; to serving something larger than just yourself, not just your narrow goals. That's because your own well-being is highly intertwined with that of others who share this global community. All of us are parts of an interdependent whole, like organs of the same body. The ripple effects of the economic meltdown throughout the world have made that clear.

The psychologically healthy adult learns to become proactive, innovative and creative. He/she enjoys growing and developing within a changing environment, and with diverse people; values positive connection and is flexible in situations of conflict.

Learning From The Business World?

Actually, I think we can learn a lot about what's needed for psychological health from changes occurring in the business world. In many respects, the most progressive, successful companies are ahead of the game. They've had to learn ways to build sustainable practices in the face of climate change. They've learned to develop models of collaboration and connection; ways to engage with, support and learn from diverse people and talents.

They've had to develop strategies for navigating through a tumultuous, global economy and remain successful, while dealing with anxieties that are part of charting a course in unknown territory, as Robert Rosen has described in Just Enough Anxiety.

I've witnessed all of the above in the men and women I work with, both through my business consulting and psychotherapy. Business people are in the trenches, dealing with constant change and conflict in their business or career environment, and in their personal lives, as well. Many are looking for ways to have more impact from their work and talents, beyond just acquiring power or money, or even personal "meaning." Some company leaders are inventing ways to link long-term financial success with environmental and social responsibility. Others are individuals trying to heal emotional conflicts in their personal lives, or find ways to help their children prepare for a future whose biggest constant will be change.

Each of us needs to develop psychologically healthy ways to deal with the new domestic and global uncertainties that can hit home any day, and the business world has been doing this already. Progressive businesses can teach us something about psychological health is because they're already illustrating it.