There is a 3000-year-old metaphor that portrays a monkey and an elephant. These two animals symbolize two parts of human behavior. It describes human behavior as an elephant, struggling to control itself while being directed by a bunch of monkeys sitting on its shoulders and directing its behavior with elephant hooks. Sometimes they are able to control the elephant, poking and nudging him relentlessly. Other times, they are not, and the elephant does whatever it pleases.
See, the monkeys represent our conscious brain while the elephants represent our subconscious brain. The monkeys can reason and know what they want the elephant to do, but sometimes the elephant acts without the necessity of instruction from the monkeys, just as a hand is pulled away from a hot stove.
As Doug Brackmann and Randy Kelley’s Driven: Understanding the Mastery of the Genetic Gifts Shared by Entrepreneurs, Navy SEALs, Pro Athletes… and Maybe You states, the tension between the conscious and subconscious, the emotional and logical monkeys, is a tough battle. In the question of which comes first, rational thought or emotion, the subconscious, or the elephant, has been proven to come first. But trying to manage the monkeys can be very difficult in and of itself.
Doug and Randy have found that for some clients, traditional practices such as meditation, are not effective. For some, focusing on another seemingly stressful, but active, distraction is an effective way to recharge and recover.
“As Driven we may not only recover from risk, we may actually be drawn to it. Anything that kicks in our Neuropeptide Y is a coping mechanism. The non-driven look at this as crazy. Why is in world would you want to come home from a stressful day and then relax by doing something stressful? If your Driven, the stress pulls us into the present and helps us let go.”
The hyper-focused nature of the Driven is associated with what is known as Neuropeptide Y. This pancreatic polypeptide was essential for survival of early mankind, where being able to refocus on the next opportunity was essential, say, if you are hunting and your prey escapes but before you know it your next opportunity is right there flashing before your eyes. The Neuropeptide Y was necessary to help you forget the loss of the past and refocus on the present before it, too, slips away. Think of an emergency room doctor or a 911 dispatcher, able to go from emergency to emergency and focus clearly on each situation in the moment even after just witnessing or responding to something extreme moments beforehand. This polypeptide is also associated with those able to complete Navy SEAL training and increase completion rates by 80%. The Driven and those with Neuropeptide Y are able to sense dangers (or opportunities) that other people would easily miss. They are also able to read others’ reactions to the environment extraordinarily well and lead their group in a way that others cannot. The Driven often go to great lengths to save those to whom they are attached, no matter what personal consequences may follow.
As we have already learned, the Driven are quite an incredible bunch. Complex and hard to understand, this skilled and unique group has many abilities that others do not. But these abilities and complexities are accompanied by consequences, as well, especially if the skills are not honed correctly. In Doug and Randy’s new book, they discuss these topics in much greater detail and help guide the Driven through these unique abilities in a way that no other book has done before. If you haven’t already, grab a copy of Driven: Understanding the Mastery of the Genetic Gifts Shared by Entrepreneurs, Navy SEALs, Pro Athletes… and Maybe You today to learn more.