![]() ![]() Once the cupboards and fridge were free of these types of foods, my elephant was no longer tempted, and self-control was made easier. If we want this duo to head in the right direction, together, we need to think about the path taken, represented by the external environment.įrom very early in my 'fat-to-fit' journey, I observed that almost every time I was derailed, it was because of an environmental factor.įor example, my efforts kept getting derailed when I committed to not eating high sugary snacks (always plural) in the afternoon whilst keeping a shelf full of these snacks in the cupboard.Īs soon as I put my house on a diet (environmental change), I no longer relied on willpower (my elephant), making it easy not to stuff my mouth with high fat, high sugar, calorie-laden foods. It's precisely that power in balance that makes adopting new behaviours really tough. The elephant has a six-ton weight advantage. The rider can try to lead the elephant or drag the elephant, but if these two ever disagree, who would you bet on? ![]() The rider might do some analysing and decide it wants to go a certain way, but it's the elephant, representing the emotional system, that provides the power for the journey. That's the part of us that plans and problem solves. The rider represents the rational system. Psychologists know that there are two systems in our brains - the rational system and the emotional system.Ī psychologist at the New York University Stern School of Business, Jonathan Haidt came up with an excellent analogy for these two systems he said, think of your brain as a human rider on top of an elephant. ![]()
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