I know the first question in your mind would be: what are The Three Brains? Or why do they even matter?
Before I share that with you I’d like to tell you that according to Neuroscience, as humans we each have three brains. The one we most often think about and pay attention to is the “head” or cephalic brain.
We also have a heart (cardiac) and a gut (enteric) brain. Each has sensory neurons, motor neurons, ganglia, and neurotransmitters. They are able to take in information, process it, store it and access it when needed. They are all true brains!
One beautiful thing about The Three Brains is that each has a number of functions that it serves better than the others. Specifically, the cephalic brain is great for thinking, cognitive perception and making meaning of things; at its best, it is also the seat of creativity.
Our heart brain is meant to take the lead on emotional processing, on values and on our connection with others; at its best, it is the source of passion and compassion. And the gut brain is designed to focus on our sense of self, on self-preservation and mobilization; at its best and it is the root of courage.
You might still be wondering how all these influence your decision making or even your business. Karlien Vanderheyden said that leaders making difficult choices should learn whether to listen to their head, heart or gut feeling.
A very high number of business leaders and entrepreneurs reason that business decisions are best made rationally, with the necessary data and thoughtful analysis.
It is not entirely wrong to think or believe in that but even though you want to depend on instinct or you don’t even want emotion to be involved at all, sometimes the results for such decisions turn out very fine and intelligent but sometimes they don’t and you wonder why.
Here’s a little something for you, you might be in between having to battle between your old way of doing things or thinking and the need for a change.
You just need to know that oftentimes, those who are not very receptive to change might find themselves struggling but also those who embrace change are likely to easily take flight. So you have to decide which side you want to be on.
Now the beautiful thing is when you as a businessman or entrepreneur are faced with a decision, using the combined wisdom of your head, heart, and gut provides a new level of self-awareness that will guide you to make better decisions.
If you’re really convinced in the abilities of the three brains, here what you need to do:
Follow Your Heart
When you’re at a junction of making an important decision but you’re faced with different but good and right decisions, then you need to listen to your heart. Your heart is about intuition, which sometimes conflicts with the messages you receive about the importance of making rational decisions.
According to a research from Medical Alert Buyers Guide, people who follow their heart tend to experience higher career and life satisfaction. You need to note that following your heart is not entirely related to making decisions like what to eat or when to eat, following your heart might be having to make a major career decision or something else which really might not pay you in the short term but better in the long term.
Being smart with your feelings is about self-awareness (you can read on self-awareness here), so deciding to follow your heart will most likely lead you to desirable places.
The simple truth about this is when you get all calculative about some life changing decisions, following your head may lead to more tangible success but not following your heart increases your risk of regret.
You choose wisely. Be sure you’re true and sincere to yourself, then you can look within and make those decisions.
Trust Your Gut
If you’ve ever gone with your gut feeling or felt the popular butterflies in your belly, you already noticed your second brain. The gut brain is hidden in the walls of your digestive system.
The gut brain is that feeling you have deep down in your stomach during times you want to make a very decision. You might want to take something and you feel like not taking it or otherwise.
When you listen to the messages your gut sends you, you will know more about what is happening in your body. Irritation in the gastrointestinal system may send signals to the brain that trigger mood changes, which can be treated by eating gut healthy foods.
The gut brain can also help you better understand your intuition—your gut instinct. Responses in the stomach or intestines may be sending you information about a situation to better understand your surroundings, or to sense a subtle feeling of danger.
For entrepreneurs and startups forging new paths, there may not be enough data to inform the best decision.
In some situations, as when there isn’t enough data available to guide you, you’ll simply have to. And even when data is available, your gut may push you to embrace other factors before you make a decision. Often, it’s worth paying attention to that feeling.
Of course, not every gut decision turns into the best decision. There’s a risk in following your gut instead of data, and sometimes your instincts can lead you astray.
It can be risky to make an instinctual choice sometimes, you must just make sure your business is ready to accept the risk.
Use Your Head
This is the very common way people make decisions. Here, you carefully view and weigh your options and you follow the results rationally.
This is not to say that the brains in the heart and the gut are as sophisticated as the head brain. The brain can help in making really good decisions in really difficult situations. You can come up with solutions to complex problems.
You cannot say because you want to entertain the gut and heart brains, you forget about being rational or logical.
As much as you want to attain the best results every single time, you must be ready to entertain the other brains.
What I’ll advise you to do is to pay attention to what you feel in your body, access the combined wisdom of your head brain, the feelings of your heart brain, and the instincts of your gut brain.
When you take the three messages from your head, your heart, and your gut, you’ll have a fuller perspective on how to take action.
You can also check out the updated business tips page for amazing business tips and if you are also thinking of starting a business you can check out the business ideas page for business ideas in agriculture, trading and so on.
