cool head

plural cool heads

1. idiomaticA calm, focused demeanor and mindset; a person having such characteristics.

   Joan had a cool head—the only cool head there—and she took command and brought order out of that chaos.

   1896, Mark Twain, chapter 5, in Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc

   4 more examples

   [H]e had been engaged in divers hostile expeditions against the aborigines, and on all occasions had he shown a cool head and a resolute mind.

   1829, James Fenimore Cooper, chapter 23, in The Wept of Wish-Ton-Wish

   It requires a cool head, which Mr. Murray most assuredly has, as well as the ability to remain unruffled by bizarre apparitions.

   1984 June 8, Janet Maslin, “Film: Ghostbusters, with Murray and Aykroyd”, in New York Times, retrieved 20 Mar 2014

   A telegenic personality who connected easily with journalists, Gerberding quickly became the public face of the CDC—a rare cool head among a parade of increasingly confused health bureaucrats.

   2006 November 19, Christine Gorman, “What Ails The CDC”, in Time, retrieved 20 Mar 2014

   There was also public praise in the days that followed for the train's driver, Andrew Johnson. It took a cool head to co-ordinate with the signaller at York ROC to have the train switched from fast to slow line, to permit the stop in Huntingdon station.

   2025 November 12, Philip Haigh, “High praise for rail staff's courage and clear thinking”, in RAIL, number 1048, page 50