If in Doubt, Believe the Body

If in Doubt, Believe the Body

“When the eyes say one thing, and the tongue another, a practiced man relies on the language of the first.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Your body doesn’t lie. It’s actually a walking truth-teller; it doesn’t even know how to lie.

But your brain does. Your mind contradicts, pretends, and steps in to referee, all the time.

Take a bite of something that tastes horrible to you and your face will instantly contort.

Do it at your boss’s dining room table to a meal his wife cooked and your brain will step in and scream, “Stop the face! No disgusting face! Smile, man, smile!”

Instantly.

But if you were being filmed, and you rewound the tape and played it in slow motion, there would be a flash, a brief moment when your initial revulsion to the taste of the food would show, right before your brain stepped in and stopped the fight.

It happens so fast the conscious mind of the boss might not catch it, but his unconscious will.

Micro-messages. The body doesn’t lie, but the brain does.

And it lies all the time, takes truth and twists it into a version that suits our sights.

Quite literally, the vista we view through our lens on life is strictly a reflection of what we’ve grown accustomed to seeing.

Our brains skew the data to fit what we expect.

So when your friend/family member/colleague acts “weird” or “off” and you ask them what’s wrong and they say “nothing” and you don’t believe them, it’s because of the micro-messages you can’t quite pin down.

Given a choice, believe the body, not the words.

“We do not see with our eyes. We see with our brains.” ~John Medina, author of Brain Rules

 



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About
Cynthia Barlow

Founder Cynthia Barlow

Facilitator, Author, Coach

Helping businesses build their people

When your people have the skills to communicate more effectively, they can connect more easily and collaborate more productively. Not only on the job, but also in life.

Communication, Connection, and Collaboration—the three “C’s”—are the cornerstones of all successful businesses. They are the result of Emotional Intelligence in action.

More details can be found in my recent best seller with co-author Jennifer Eggers:
Resilience: It’s Not About Bouncing Back

The power of resilience within organizations can transform an average company into a powerhouse. Yet, even in times of rapid disruptive change, there is no manual for building resilient organizations. This book is that manual.

“If you  want to build more resilience intentionally—personally and professionally—read this book.
~
Fran Karamousis, Chief  of Research, Gartner

 

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