You Are Not One Person in One Brain
- 19 hours ago
- 3 min read
I’m a huge fan of "The Diary of a CEO" podcast by Steven Bartlett.
And this episode with Stanford neuroscientist David Eagleman was one of the most mind-expanding conversations I’ve listened to in a long time.
One sentence especially stayed with me:
“You are not one person in one brain.”
I thought about periods in my own life where I deeply wanted transformation while simultaneously resisting it.
Leaving architecture behind. Building a new professional identity. Moving countries. Redesigning my lifestyle and health habits...
Different systems inside us are constantly negotiating with each other. One part wants growth. Another wants safety. One part dreams about change. Another protects the familiar.
From the outside, the changes I made looked like decisions. From the inside, it felt more like a reconstruction project.
Here is what helped me make sense of it all.
Problem: When Our Inner Construct No Longer Matches Our Reality
The brain constantly creates internal models about who we are and how the world works.
Over time, these patterns become familiar to our system. They shape how we think, decide, react, and perform.
But life changes faster than these internal maps do.
A career transition. A leadership role. A new level of visibility or responsibility.
Part of our system still protects an older version of reality.
Solution: Teaching our System the Safety of a New Reality
With neuroplasticity the brain continuously reorganises itself through repetition, emotional regulation, and external inputs.
Sustainable transformation comes from helping the system experience enough safety to build a new internal construct.
This is also why coaching can become transformative. New perspectives and experiences gradually create new neural pathways.
In this episode ‘Stanford Neuroscientist: Can’t Remember Your Dreams? Your Brain May Be Warning You!’ Dr. Eagleman also spoke about why the brain craves the sweet spot between the familiar and the new.
Too much familiarity reduces stimulation. Too much uncertainty creates stress.
Growth and flow happen where challenge and safety coexist.
Another fascinating topic was the difference between ‘Fluid Intelligence’ and ‘Crystallized Intelligence’.
Fluid intelligence helps us adapt and solve new problems.
Crystallized intelligence relies on familiar patterns.
Modern life increasingly demands fluid intelligence while the nervous system naturally seeks familiar territory.
Learning something unfamiliar or entering new environments forces the brain to build new neural pathways.
The professionals and teams I see navigating uncertainty most effectively tend to:
💎 Understand that conflicting approaches are often different systems negotiating safety and growth
💎 Expose themselves to new experiences instead of staying trapped in familiar patterns
💎 Build sustainable performance through regulation, repetition and reflection
Maybe real growth begins when we stop fighting our internal wiring and start understanding how to reconstruct it.
If this reflection resonates with you, maybe this is your reminder that sustainable growth begins by understanding what is behind your conflicting behaviour.
You're welcome to BOOK A FREE 30-MIN CALL with me to explore where to start.
Warmly,
Dilek
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