Jones

This scene of terror is repeated all too often in elk country every season. Over the years, the hunters’ screams of anguish have rocked the timber.
—Don Laubach and Mark Henkel, Elk Talk

he gets the rest of the trophies for having avoided all the car crashes and jail time and alcoholism on his cultural dance card. Or maybe the reward for lucking through all that—meth too, he guesses—is having been married ten years now to Peta, who doesn’t have to put up with motorcycle parts soaking in the sink, with the drips of Wolf-brand chili he always leaves between the coffee table and the couch, with the tribal junk he always tries to sneak up onto the walls of their next house.

There are two lives; the lived and the unlived life. The lived life is what you know all too well. It is the rhythm you’ve found yourself in. But deep down, you know there are endless things you could be doing better… if only you acted differently. This is the unlived life. It represents your potential, and the opportunity costs of inaction.

Last night when you set the alarm, your rational brain was in charge of making decisions

But now… it’s cold and dark, you’re tired, and it’s more comfortable in bed. Your emotional brain has now taken over. The emotional brain that wants to stay warm and snug becomes a powerful force that dominates the rational brain that wants to get fit.

the rational brain knows what is necessary, but the emotional brain doesn’t want to do the hard work

The Heath Brothers use a metaphor of ‘the rider and the elephant’ to explain the battle. Our rational brain is the rider. Our emotional brain is the elephant. The rider can control where the elephant goes… to a certain extent. At any moment, the mighty elephant can take over and do whatever it wants.
If you just instruct the rider on what to do, then you have an understanding but not motivation. If you only appeal to the elephant, then you have passion but no direction. If you want to make a behaviour change, you must get both the rider and the elephant walking along the same path.

give your rider the best shot at doing the right thing, you need to make your desired change crystal clear.

If it is clear and easy, the rider can take control. As soon as you lose clarity, your puny little rational rider stands no chance

As soon as things start to feel difficult or complicated, the elephant will be looking for an easy way out