{"id":37622,"date":"2024-04-18T14:24:43","date_gmt":"2024-04-18T21:24:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/?p=37622"},"modified":"2024-04-18T19:49:26","modified_gmt":"2024-04-19T02:49:26","slug":"youre-such-an-animal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/youre-such-an-animal\/","title":{"rendered":"You\u2019re Such an Animal! Overcoming Biology"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

Goose Eckert, 2024<\/p><\/div>\n

All the books we have been reading lately about thinking\u2026 really have me thinking!<\/p>\n

I love dogs, but how much DNA could I possibly have in common with my brute-force 117-pound Bernese Mountain pup? The answer is a surprising 84 percent.[1]<\/a> In the opening pages of his book, Clear Thinking, <\/em>author Shane Parrish acknowledges that human biology is a significant factor that determines how we make decisions in life. \u201cOur biological tendencies are hardwired within us,\u201d[2]<\/a> which is why we are sometimes territorial and protective of ourselves and those we care about. It is also why we naturally tend to create and operate under a hierarchical structure – somewhat like dogs. These are not bad characteristics; however, they can lead to clouded thinking, especially at times when decision-making matters most.<\/p>\n

Parrish, a former intelligence officer when a plane crashed into the Pentagon during the 9\/11 attack, shared that during this time of crisis, he and his colleagues were unprepared for the numerous decisions that would cross their plates. It was then that he realized, despite his college and military education, that he lacked instruction on how to methodically guide his decision-making abilities, which is what prompted further interest in this area.<\/p>\n

With a little nudge garnered through his friendship with author and Nobel Prize Winner, Daniel Kahneman, Parrish, determined that discipline through setting personal rules was the most successful framework to establish good habits that would allow for better coping when crisis struck. In Thinking Fast and Slow, <\/em>author Daniel Kahneman describes \u201csystem one\u201d as the automatic thinking that people tend to do in a hurry while \u201csystem two\u201d is when you intentionally slow down to weigh the pros and cons of the decision.[3]<\/a><\/p>\n

Parrish adopts the same description of thinking models, but names them differently and builds on them. He correlates Kahneman’s \u201csystem one\u201d as more biological or autopilot thinking. These reflect the natural traits that are in our DNA. But Parrish works backward from the current thinking modes to assess the compounding of previous choices and behaviors that directly impact the choices made in the present moment. Comparing it with relationships, Parrish believes that if you nurture them well, relationships can better withstand and overcome hurdles as they arise. However, a crisis could easily destroy a neglected relationship. He calls this \u201cputting water or gas on the fire.\u201d[4]<\/a><\/p>\n

The other element that Parrish advocates for is consistency, inferring that most people follow routines for only a short time, leaving them unprepared when a problem arises. Life Church pastor, Craig Groeschel, shares the same sentiment that, Successful people do CONSISTENTLY what others do OCCASIONALLY.\u201d[5]<\/a> He argues that making a rule for yourself leaves less room to be sabotaged by a lack of willpower.<\/p>\n

We may do our very best in the moment, but what we did that led up to that moment defines whether we really did our best or not. Whether we were prepared or operated on autopilot. For me, at this very moment, I am not operating at my best. Not only do I not feel well, but I have been fulfilling extensive work obligations and thus spending less time on my health. I am seeing the consequences of my actions through Kahneman’s \u201csystem one\u201d thinking or Parrish’s autopilot thinking.<\/p>\n

Another concept co-opted by Parrish is the decision-making quadrant. If the risk for error is low, you are relatively safe to think fast with your \u201csystem one\u201d brain. However, bigger decisions with a more significant risk should be given more time to consider. He argues that we should use our \u201csystem two\u201d brain to consider the outcome. We should ask ourselves whether the result could be a win-win scenario or a win-lose. Could it be a lose-win scenario or a lose-lose? Taking the time to stop and consider the gravity of the choice and its related impact will help you consider how<\/em><\/strong> to make decisions. This is precisely what Parrish lacked on 9\/11.<\/p>\n

Independently, the concepts Parrish writes about are not novel. However, his coupling of them together has brought new life and awareness to the importance of what Kahneman pioneered in how to successfully think fast and slow. I really enjoyed this book and the three podcast interviews with him that I listened to.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[1]<\/a> Martini, Hunter. \u201cMan\u2019s Best Distant Relative: How Much DNA Do We Share with Dogs?\u201d DDC UK DEV<\/em>. Last modified August 30, 2023. Accessed April 17, 2024. https:\/\/dnacentre.co.uk\/blog\/mans-best-distant-relative-how-much-dna-do-we-share-with-dogs\/.<\/p>\n

[2]<\/a> Parrish, Shane. Clear Thinking: Turning Ordinary Moments into Extraordinary Results<\/em>. New York, NY: Portfolio\/Penguin, 2023.<\/p>\n

[3]<\/a> Kahneman, Daniel. Thinking, Fast and Slow<\/em>. 1st pbk. ed. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2013.<\/p>\n

[4]<\/a> Freedom Pact. Former Spy Reveals His Secrets For Making Better Decisions | Shane Parrish<\/em>, 2023. Accessed April 18, 2024. https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=gHss9qawHAo.<\/p>\n

[5]<\/a> \u201cHttps:\/\/Twitter.Com\/Craiggroeschel\/Status\/1215438121501851652?Lang=en.\u201d X (Formerly Twitter)<\/em>. Accessed April 18, 2024. https:\/\/twitter.com\/craiggroeschel\/status\/1215438121501851652?lang=en.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

All the books we have been reading lately about thinking\u2026 really have me thinking! I love dogs, but how much DNA could I possibly have in common with my brute-force 117-pound Bernese Mountain pup? The answer is a surprising 84 percent.[1] In the opening pages of his book, Clear Thinking, author Shane Parrish acknowledges that […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":193,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[3200],"class_list":["post-37622","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-dlpg03-parrish","cohort-dlgp03"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37622","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/193"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37622"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37622\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37636,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37622\/revisions\/37636"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37622"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37622"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37622"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}