The Human Mind Flashcards
Reference Levels
At the heart of perceptions are reference levels - a range of perceptions that indicate the system is “under control”.
3 kinds of reference levels:
- set point: minimum or maximum value.
- range: two set points. A range of acceptable values.
- error: the set point is 0 or null.
Changing behaviour
If you want to change a behavior, you must either change the system’s reference level or change the environment in which the system is operating.
hindbrain
responsible for actual actions - moving signals through spinal cord and nerves that result in physical actions.
midbrain
Processing sensory data, emotion, memory and pattern matching. Constantly predicting and sending that info to the hindbrain, which readies our bodies for immediate action
→ associated with radio announcer and the hindbrain is the radio.
Forebrain
Conscious engagement of the mind - self awareness, logic, deliberation, inhibition and decision. Halts automatic action until it is done ‘thinking’ in which case the other two brains can resume normal function.
Behaviour change
If you want to change a behavior, don’t try to change the behavior directly. Change the structure that influences or supports the behavior, and the behavior will change automatically.
Reorganization
Is a random action that occurs when a reference level is violated but you don’t know what to do to bring the perception back under control. So, you try different things (reorganize) until the reference level changes or the perception is agreeable again.
Conflict
Occurs when two control systems try to change the same perception.
The white and black wolf. One wants a thing and perceives working as “sleep.” The other wants to work and perceives working as “the move.” They are both control systems that will lead to different actions.
Conflicts can only be resolved by changing the reference levels
How success is defined by the parties involved — and is best done by changing the structure of the situation.
Each party in a conflict have different reference levels which are influenced by a situation or the environment.
i.e. for procrastination - setting aside time for rest assures the sleep control system that there will be a time for sleep which decreases the perception of loss when doing work.
Motivation
Motivation is an emotional state that links the parts of our brain that feel with the parts that are responsible for action. Can be broken down into two different desires:
- Desire to move toward things that are desirable
- Desire to move away from things which are undesirable
Loss aversion is real
People feel the pain of loss more than the enjoyment of equivalent gains.
Best way to overcome loss aversion is to reinterpret the risk of loss as “no big deal”. We choose our interpretations of things we perceive!!! Even losses.
Threat lockdown
A phenomenon where we are in a protection mode which makes it difficult to do anything but fixate on a threat.
If experiencing TL, the worst thing is to try to repress it. It will be like a little kid trying to get his mother’s attention while being ignored. The cry for attention will eventually get so loud and strong that it cannot be ignored.
Cognitive Scope Limitation
Basically, people can be lazy in their thinking or simply don’t spend enough time thinking about things (from either laziness, lack of time, or fatigue).
Newspaper Rule
A simulation that asks your forebrain to run through a decision as if it were going to be published on the front page of Times where all of your friends and family would see it so that you avoid making decisions that are morally or ethically compromising or otherwise “slp” (‘slp’ meaning unconscious, stupid, or illogical — used frequently).
Grandchild Rule
Evaluating a decision with the long-term consequences in mind such as I’m imagining that your grandchild will give you feedback on the decision in 30-40 years. (or that it affects them).
Absence blindness* (important)
A cognitive bias that prevents us from identifying what we can’t observe (slp).
i.e. you don’t see a manager working that hard to put out fires [but that’s because they are avoided in the first place by responsible and efficient work + systems].
Praise the manager that is low-drama who quietly and effectively gets things done.
Contrast:
in business, the principle that our perceptions are influenced by information gathered from the surrounding environment [we contrast things with others in the environment]
Scarcity
Encourages people to make decisions quickly.
Adding a scarcity element to an offer can encourage people to take action quicker.
Adding scarcity to an offer:
- Limited Quantities
- Price Increases - inform prospects the price will go up in the near future
- Price decreases (discount expirations)
- Deadlines - offer deadlines.
Akrasia
The experience of knowing or feeling that we should do something but we don’t do it.
- It’s a general feeling that you “should” do something, without necessarily deciding you should do it {like a maybe/someday list in Trello}
- The “should” feeling sticks around but doesn’t lead to action, which generates frustration
- In Greek - “Lacking command over oneself”
- It is a barrier to getting things done
Akrasia seems to have 4 components:
- A task
- A desire/want
- A “should”
- An emotional experience of RESISTANCE (R)
R
- R: You can’t define what you want
- R: You believe the task will bring you closer to something that you don’t want
- R: You can’t figure out how to get where you want from where you currently are
- R: You idealize the desired end result to the point that you estimate a low chance of achievement, leading to loss aversion
- R: The “should” was established by someone else, leading to persuasion resistance.
- R: A competing action in the environment promises immediate gratification
- R: The benefits of the action are distant leading to near/far thinking when compared to ‘closer’ immediate or concrete actions
The difference here between akrasia and procrastination
Procrastination is the mechanism with which we delay action on a task while akrasia is the feeling that we get when we are presented with the option to choose to do the thing we ‘should’ do, but don’t. I.e. I’m procrastinating doing the dishes by watching tv, but I feel akrasia while i’m watching tv because I should be washing the dishes.*/
Monoidealism
The state of solely focusing your energy and attention on one thing ONLY, without conflicts. Also called the “flow” state, like when I’m writing this summary
Conflicts kill productivity, progress, decision making, and adherence to a system.
Flow is a state of focus without conflict.
To enhance transition into FLOW:
- Eliminate potential distractions and interruptions
- Eliminate inner conflicts before starting to work
- kick-start the Attention process by doing a “dash” (a Pomodoro)
- → the philosophy is that the transition into flow takes between 10 and 30 min on average so you should commit to working at least that much (which is when it’s hard) and give yourself the permission to stop and do something else at the end if you want, though that rarely happens.
Meditation
is a form of monoidealism “resistance training”. The same technique of recapturing awareness to breath is the principle behind bringing yourself back to work when we are distracted
