Become An Expert In Yourself

How do you understand you? The way we understand most things is to observe them objectively. How can you observe you when you are you? As author Shane Parrish says, you have to make the invisible visible. Only then do things become decoupled and unraveled from you. When it’s in your head, it’s still you. You’re amazing, but your ability to be objective is complicated by biologically programmed default settings. It’s not just you, all humans have them. These settings drive our actions and responses to actions in everyday situations. They are deeply rooted in our subconscious and are very challenging to navigate. 

In Parrish’s new book Clear Thinking, he refers to them as:

Ego Default

Social Default

Inertia Default

Emotional Default

The ego default served us well when we were trying to avoid tigers and dinosaurs. The social default helped us when conforming to groups was the only way to stay alive. The inertia default worked to keep us in those protected group environments. The last one … well, we are emotional creatures.

Today, these same default settings can lead to the pursuit of unimportant things, the deterioration of relationships, and a lack of understanding what is worth wanting. Think about that last one for a minute. Not what you want, but what is worth wanting. 

If we recognize when these defaults grab the reins, we can manage their effects on the important moments of our lives. If you understand your thoughts and your reasoning, you can actually feel when these defaults take over. Writing by hand in a journal helps me do that. No expectations. No rules. Just keep the pencil moving.

Turn your thoughts into objects, witness your defaults in action and keep them in check.

Become an expert in you.

PS - If books aren’t your thing, you can listen to my friend Mark Fielding and I explore the key points of Shane Parrish’s book here - Thinking On Paper Book Club.