Old Rule: Play it safe.
New Rule: Don’t be a chicken. Literally!

Forget quote of the day, here’s an idea to take with you through the year. Seth Godin answers the question, “How do we rise above the grip of resistance-addicted lizard brain into unleashed, energized, full tilt mojo and artistic moxy?”

Answer:

“The lizard is the prehistoric brain stem, the amygdala, the part of our brain responsible for anger, revenge, sex and safety. It’s what a chicken has, all that a chicken has.

The lizard is mistaken.

The lizard successfully believed, for a really long time, that safety was good. Avoid saber-tooth tigers. Duck your head. Don’t raise your hand. That = survival.

Now, of course, that equals burger-flipping and Wal-Mart greeting. Safety is a recipe for food stamps.

What the lizard ought to be doing is pushing you to do art, pushing you to stand out, pushing you to do work that matters and to make a difference. So, you rise above by seducing and quieting the lizard, and then, when it’s snoozing, do exactly the opposite of what it wants you to do.”

I’ve never wanted fear to be the thing that stops me from being what I was put on this planet to be, or doing what I was put on this planet to do. I mean, fear is just a thought, right? Who’s boss of me anyway, me or my amygdala?!

- Liz Gaige
Market Navigators Consulting