Is your brain out to get you? Mine’s out to get me. That doesn't mean I’m ready for the men in the white coats yet. It just means that sometimes my brain gets in the way of my own success. Yours does too – usually without you even knowing it. Here’s why. We actually have two very different brains inside our head. The “new” brain, with its higher-level reasoning abilities; and the “old” brain, which helped us survive back when we had to quickly recognize and respond to predators and other threats. The new brain gives us amazing powers to create, innovate, and see new possibilities. But it’s the old brain that controls much of our thought patterns and decision-making processes. And therein lies the problem. The old brain is a superb pattern-recognizer that tends to look for information to support what we already know to be true about the world. In doing so, it actively rejects information that contradicts our view of the world. And it usually does this before the new brain can catch on to what the old brain is doing. So we get caught in a double-whammy of seeing things the same old way while actively avoiding new information that doesn't align with what we believe to be true. That’s how we get caught totally off guard when our best customer defects to a competitor. And that’s how we never see the outsider who sweeps in and steals market share with a new product or service we never imagined. The evidence was always there; our brains just wouldn't let us see it. The solution is simple: pause every now and then to question our old-brain assumptions about the way the world works. Notice I said simple, NOT easy. When we’re running so fast to keep up – as we all are these days – the last thing we want to do is slow down to review our thought processes, because that feels like we’re falling even further behind. But if we don’t slow down to go fast we may end up losing the race altogether. First, we need to understand that slowing down every now and then will actually help us get there faster in the end. Then we need to practice three essential steps. One, learn to pause every now and then, even if only for 10 seconds at a time. Take a few moments to clear the mind and reset; to look up, look around, ponder, wonder and explore. To ask the occasional “what if?” question without expecting an immediate answer. Two, while you're pausing, start thinking about what you're thinking about. Human beings are driven to move very quickly. As a result, our brain responds emotionally first, and then applies logic to make it fit what we just responded to emotionally. So thinking about what we're thinking about is critical. Question some of your thinking processes. Change perspective. Challenge assumptions. Challenge the need to have the one right answer that we always strive so hard to find. Third, learn to focus on what's going on around you. In particular, learn to focus on winning, and use that focus to get obsessive and relentless about it.

1. Holly G. Green
the architect of pause™
&
thinking to thrive expert
www.TheHumanFactor.biz www.MoreThanaMinute.com

2. Slow down…
to go fast
www.TheHumanFactor.biz www.MoreThanaMinute.com

3. Have you ever
made a dumb
management
decision?
www.TheHumanFactor.biz www.MoreThanaMinute.com
Sometimes your
brain is out to
get you

4. We have 2 very different brains
“New” brain - higher-level
reasoning abilities
www.TheHumanFactor.biz www.MoreThanaMinute.com
“Old” brain – instinctual,
instantaneous response
(helped us survive back when we had to quickly
recognize & respond to predators & other threats)

5. The old brain is a superb
pattern-recognizer
looking for data to
support what we already
know to be true about
the world & often actively
rejecting info that
contradicts our view of
the world.
www.TheHumanFactor.biz www.MoreThanaMinute.com

6. We don’t believe what we see…
We see what we already believe…
…and we seek constantly to prove
ourselves right
www.TheHumanFactor.biz www.MoreThanaMinute.com

7. www.TheHumanFactor.biz www.MoreThanaMinute.com
That’s how we get caught totally off
guard when our best customer defects
to a competitor.
And that’s how we
never see the outsider
who sweeps in & steals
market share with a
new product or service
we never imagined.

8. www.TheHumanFactor.biz www.MoreThanaMinute.com
every now & then.
Take a moment to clear the
mind & reset.
Look up, look around, ponder,
wonder & explore.
Ask the occasional “what if?”
question without expecting an
immediate answer.

9. www.TheHumanFactor.biz www.MoreThanaMinute.com
about what you're thinking
about.
Question some of your thinking
processes. Change
perspective. Challenge
assumptions.
Challenge the need to have the
one right answer that we
always strive so hard to find.

10. www.TheHumanFactor.biz www.MoreThanaMinute.com
on what's going on around you.
Focus on winning. Constantly.
Get crystal clear on what
winning means for your
business & you personally.
Move towards it instead of just
running in circles.

11. www.TheHumanFactor.biz www.MoreThanaMinute.com
Slowing down to
go fast may seem
counterintuitive.
But running in
place, no matter
how fast, won’t get
you anywhere.

12. Pause, think, focus to win.
Contact
Holly@TheHumanFactor.biz if you
want to win in business!