If you’re not reading Seth Godin’s Linchpin, the title of this post (which is actually a quote from the book) probably won’t make a lick of sense to you…yet.
Yesterday, this quote helped me learn something about myself.
“Never let the Lizard send email.”
Pretty abstract, huh. I’ve learned that the Lizard (my Lizard Brain anyway) is largely driven by a terrible, terrible four letter word. Fear.
The Lizard Brain, as Seth describes, is literally a portion of our brain that sits near our brain stem and controls fight or flight reactions. It’s an old and primal part of the brain with enough power to overtake the newer portions of the brain that control creativity, new ideas and all the functions that lead us to passion, self actualization and to doing the work (or art) we enjoy and have the ability to produce.
If you want to learn more about the Lizard Brain and The Resistance, buy the book (non-affiliate link up top, folks). Seth does a fine job explaining his own concepts, and if you pay attention, they might just change your paradigm.
My Lizard Brain
I remember once being in a debate with a client of mine. During a conference call, I became afraid of scope creep as the result of a decision the team had to make and some obvious differences in opinion. There was tension, and before the air was cleared, we had to end the call due to time.
The follow-up email from me should have never been sent. I was freaking out and, as a result, my normal style of written communication changed. I wrote as if I was writing a legal document. I wrote as if I was trying to protect myself from a poor outcome. It wasn’t nasty, per se, but it was cold, removed and void of any context of the relationship I had spent weeks building with my client contact. The message was not received (or perceived) well, and the call that followed was not the most comfortable conversation either.
Thanks to Seth, I know now that my email was the result of my Lizard Brain. I was afraid. The better, newer, more sophisticated part of my brain was being overrun by a reaction to that fear. The Lizard, in it’s instinctual effort to protect me from harm actually came close to sabotaging my success.
“Never let the Lizard send email.”
We took a few days off after that incident. After all normal brain function had returned, we addressed the situation, I apologized, and we moved forward. Happy ending.
Has this happened to you? Have you ever let your Lizard Brain take control?
**For bonus points, now that Seth has given it a name and you know it’s there, will you be able to better control your own Lizard in the future?
Photo Credit: ShaunCK
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