Looking at this book on my shelf did not excite me as I thought about reading it. However, I was pleasantly surprised that I found the information useful and relevant. I certainly did struggle to get through it though as I kept finding myself distracted repeatedly.<\/p>\n
We have a couple of house guests staying with us for a month. One is a six-year-old boy who has come to Mayo Clinic (located in our city) for open heart surgery. He has come with his older adult sister from Papua New Guinea. I dutifully brought this book with me to the hospital every day this week. I found that a hospital setting is not ideal for staying on task. Everything was new and constantly distracting. Even when I had plenty of time to give attention to reading, I found that my brain was too tired and too much in a fog. As I kept reading, I realized that everything I was doing was requiring system 2 kind of thinking and nothing could be done on system 1\u2019s autopilot.[1]<\/a> I wasn\u2019t familiar with the hospital\u2019s parking lot, elevators, hallways, appointments, or the post-op room. Everything took lots of brain work to process.<\/p>\n Yet, after visiting the little patient (now at my home recovering well) day after day, I found myself suddenly in his room on the 5th<\/sup> floor without much brain work to get there. System 1 was beginning to take over and less brain energy was being used. Dr. Rock gives some brilliant insights into how we can prioritize our brains with using the metaphor of a stage with actors, an audience, and a director. He addresses some things I already do such as, giving the \u201cbrain a rest by mixing things up\u201d[2]<\/a> and prioritizing tasks for when I am \u201cfresh and alert.\u201d[3]<\/a> Rock also advises people to \u201clabel emotions,\u201d[4]<\/a> take the other person\u2019s status into account[5]<\/a> and think through the topic of fairness.[6]<\/a><\/p>\n One topic that I found interesting and pertinent to my NPO is the topic of friend or foe. He writes, “Here’s one big reason collaboration is difficult: just as the brain automatically classifies any situation into a possible reward or threat, it does the same with people, determining, subconsciously, whether each person you meet is either a friend or foe.\u201d[7]<\/a> My NPO is focused on trying to find a way to encourage the Christian community to integrate with the Somali community in my city. I have realized that these two communities simply live side by side with each other with very limited interaction together. But Rock helped solidify why this is the case. \u201cPeople you don’t know who are also a little different from you, tend to be classified as foe until proven otherwise.”[8]<\/a><\/p>\n We see each other\u2019s community as an opponent or a foe. How do I work to overcome this? One Somali Imam (like an Islamic priest) has been adamant that the only way to support them in this community is through social justice and political advocacy. Though I agree with him that the laws can be unfair and that there are societal injustices the Somali community faces, I disagree with him on how to move forward. I think that the broader Christian community will continue to see the Somali community in terms of foe if there is a constant political battle taking place. As Rock writes, “You don’t interact with a perceived foe using the same brain regions you would use to process your own experience… you don’t feel empathy with him or her.”[9]<\/a><\/p>\n In contrast with the Imam, my perspective and approach has been to build a mutual relationship with Somalis over a cup of tea or coffee at a local establishment. I have pointed out to the Imam that when him and I sit together in a coffee shop we are doing the work of bridging the communities together. When people from both the Christian and the Somali community see us sitting together having a cup of coffee it shows that we are friends and not foe. Thus, it allows our communities to begin to see each other as less of a foe and more of a friend. Essentially, if the Imam is a trusted friend of mine, then it allows for more Christians to see him as a friend as well. When this friendship is developed through \u201cshared goals\u201d we might, \u201cTurn enemies into friends.”[10]<\/a><\/p>\n Thinking through my NPO in terms of our brain chemistry is not something I had thought through before and it is helpful to have new terminology and insight into the reasons beyond the relational barriers I face.<\/p>\n ______________________________________________________<\/p>\n [1]<\/a> Daniel Kahneman, Thinking, Fast and Slow<\/em>, 1st ed (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2011), 20.<\/p>\n [2]<\/a> David Rock, Your Brain at Work: Strategies for Overcoming Distraction, Regaining Focus, and Working Smarter All Day Long<\/em>, Revised and updated edition (New York, NY: Harper Business, 2020), 16.<\/p>\n [3]<\/a> Rock, 15.<\/p>\n [4]<\/a> Rock, 113.<\/p>\n [5]<\/a> Rock, 180.<\/p>\n [6]<\/a> Rock, 188.<\/p>\n [7]<\/a> Rock, 162.<\/p>\n