Unleashing Top Dog Potential in an Underdog World

God grant me... Serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things that I can, And Wisdom to know the difference. Not just pretty words...But words to live by. I have to thank Dr. Bill Crawford for reminding me of them yesterday. Attended this seminar yesterday, Unleashing Top Dog Potential in an Underdog World. It was very interesting. The speaker was Dr. Bill Crawford. He is quite an engaging person. Highly intelligent, articulate, and entertaining, he comes across as the Steve Martin of Psychology. He's very animated and skilled at doing what he does...Published 3 books, some audio versions of same. Also had 2 PBS programs. The purpose of the seminars, in my opinion is, to motivate people to be the best they can be, and not just in difficult situations (or dealing with difficult people), although this seemed to be the main tone of the class. In the beginning, I could feel an subtle undertone of "You can apply this to your Whole Life!" By the end of the seminar it was not just an undertone. Dis-stressing behaviors Dr. Bill believes that difficult people are that way out of fear. And that this type of response is a learned behavior. A product of our environs. The Past. I'm not sure if I swallow that completely, but it seems to make some kind of sense if you look at it sideways. Fear (Fight or Flight) responses come from the Brainstem and not the NeoCortex where "Top Dog" thinking is done. De-Stressing Behaviors The good doctor offers techniques to keep your thinking from staying in the Brainstem (or "reptilian" brain) wherein resides the Fight or Flight (Fear?!) response. Another fear based response? - which is rarely proactive. We should strive to deal with these things from the NeoCortex part of the brain. What is required is to stop and Think... Breathe - take 3 or 4 Deep breaths (or whatever it takes) Relax - think of something that will make you feel serene Ask - how would I rather be feeling? Imagine - feeling this way. Notice - the changes. Thinking in this way stops the chemical reaction that forces us to think with "Fight or Flight" part of our brain. And therefore, allows us to think clearly again. The Golden Rule For me....We should always strive to deal with others with respect and dignity. In other words, Do unto others...But without the religious overtones works for me. That's just my opinion... More on Dr. Bill later. The man is a wealth of information...