I help entrepreneurs leapfrog over the typical potholes that derail most small businesses with inspiration, motivation, education, and support across a wide range of business topics drawn from over a decade of running my own business, teaching entrepreneurship for the City of New York, and coaching and consulting privately with dozens of women and minority small business owners. Honestly, why go it alone when help is an email away?
On a Gut Level
As I’ve mentioned before, I love learning about how our brains work especially as it relates to decision-making.
Recently, I read about a really interesting medical case.
A successful lawyer required brain surgery to remove a tumor. The surgery was successful, and the lawyer recovered.
He went back to work but couldn’t actually perform his job or any other job as it turns out. In short order, he went on disability, his marriage fell apart, and he moved into his brother’s spare room.
Even though the patient aced all the usual neurological tests, clearly there was an issue.
Eventually, he consults a famous neurologist in the hopes that he can figure out the mystery.
When the doctor asks the patient after their initial examination, “When should we schedule our next appointment,” the patient runs through the pros and cons of each available date but can’t decide which is best.
This provides the neurologist critical insight into how the patient’s brain function has been compromised.
Shortly thereafter, the neurologist discovers that a key connection between the patient’s frontal lobe and the area that controls emotion has been severed by the surgery.
Our frontal lobe controls things like thinking and judgment, among other stuff. Our emotional center is the oldest part of our brains and includes the amygdala, which controls our sense of danger and strong emotions.
When the neurologist dug deeper to understand why this disconnection caused such havoc for the patient, he made several fascinating discoveries:
- Many of the decisions we make in life whether they are big or small draw on our life experience.
- The part of the brain that stores that type of experience is contained within the deepest and oldest part of our emotional centers, and it does not connect directly to the part of our brains that think in words.
- This ancient part of our brain is, however, directly connected to our gastrointestinal tract.
In other words, there’s a language our bodies speak that is primal and quite separate and apart from the areas of our brains responsible for rational thought and logic.
I'm not gonna lie, I shivered a little when I learned this because it was incredibly validating. I've always believed that gut instinct is an important element to our decision-making.
It's not just something we needed a long time ago to survive the physical perils of the day. It's something that continues to be useful and to protect us in our every day modern lives.
So, we definitely shouldn't ignore it!
When you're feeling torn between your head and your instincts, trust your gut! Your body's alarm system is ringing for a reason.
Until next week, don't forget to check in with yourself on a regular basis throughout each day. Mindfulness is a great way to keep your intuition and instincts in fighting form.
P.S. — If you missed it, last week I shared how to Rise Above.
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Easily Said & Done
I help entrepreneurs leapfrog over the typical potholes that derail most small businesses with inspiration, motivation, education, and support across a wide range of business topics drawn from over a decade of running my own business, teaching entrepreneurship for the City of New York, and coaching and consulting privately with dozens of women and minority small business owners. Honestly, why go it alone when help is an email away?
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