The Chimp Paradox is a book, by Professor Steve Peters. It explains how your brain works in plain English, using simple to understand analogies rather than complicated medical speak.
Steve explains the brain is not a single entity but a series of different resources, all competing to take charge of your behaviour and your emotions, your speech, and your action.
These resources both compete and collaborate, sometimes working in tandem and sometimes fighting against each other. He explains why people behave in different ways when they are stressed, and when they are calm.
The book is divided into three parts, with the first part exploring your inner mind.
He introduces your chimp brain, your human brain, and your computer brain. He explores how they interact, and then goes on to map out how these three resources, and others, interact with each other to guide you and define your outward personality.
The second section explains the day-to-day functioning of your brain, and how you interact with others. He explains what triggers your responses in times of instant stress, and in times of chronic stress.
The third and final section covers your health, success, and happiness. He teaches you how to discount negative events, live in the present, and how to find happiness.
In the area of human conflict, he explains why people disagree with each other, and the circumstances in which you will and will not be able to win arguments and influence other people.
In short if either you or the person you were arguing with, has their chimp brain switched on and in charge, then agreement is very unlikely.
The book teaches you to encourage the other person out of their chimp mode first, and only then to move on to explaining your different point of view. I was a little sceptical at first, but I’ve tried this technique out several times and the results were extraordinary.
The book has been endorsed by Sir Chris Hoy, Olympic cyclist Victoria Pendleton and multiple world champion snooker player Ronnie O’Sullivan. It has received glowing press reviews.
The book is an easy read and totally transformed my understanding of how my brain works. It has helped me to handle conflict differently and with better results. Where I still get it wrong, I am now able to reflect, analyse, and understand why I ended up where I did, how to identify the mistakes I made, and how to try and program myself to react differently next time something bad or annoying happens.
Soza believes reading this books will greatly help you manage your mental health and take control of how you conduct yourself when stressed. Another ground breaking book.