Читать книгу Beyond Emotional Intelligence - S. Michele Nevarez - Страница 14

What neuroscience has not yet connected the dots on in this equation, as far as I have been able to discern, is the role of affect's sidekick “ego,” defined in this context as our pervasive and enduring sense of self, the psychological lynchpin of our fundamental drive for self-preservation and search for meaning. We each move through the world with a primal and mostly unconscious reliance upon our sense of self as the “owner” of this body and mind. It is thanks at least in part to the continual manifestation of affect that we have the impression of being a self in a body in which we have the capacity to feel and to make conscious and volitional choices. Moreover, it is owing to our capacity to be aware that our experience manifests and registers to begin with. Irrespective of whether our awareness is inseparable from consciousness, the capacity and continuity of which may persist or cease the moment our lease on this body is up, or whether consciousness is independent of or dependent on our physical form, we each have the undeniable experience of being aware and existing as a self in a body. I've not met a person yet who doesn't have the distinct impression they exist. From this perception of agency comes our instinct to find personal purpose and meaning, offering a psychological rationale and counterpart to our physical existence while at the same time playing the role of an inbuilt cheerleader, an ebullient advocate who knows just when to break out the pompoms and Let's Go Bananas routine when the wattage of our chispa for life wanes. Whether a construct or not, our sense of self is a pervasive feature of our experience. While we may very well have ego to thank for the ongoing sequel of embodied existence, experientially it seems to serve the purpose of being the functional “owner” of this body in which our capacity for awareness has made all perception possible. Part and parcel of our physicality is a psychological imperative, albeit both temporary. Meanwhile, our affect and awareness serve as both the map and navigation system. We'll look at what recent neuroscience research does and does not have to say about each in the chapters that follow.

For the purposes of this book, we'll mostly approach things from the level of what is practical, acknowledging that how things appear may not be as they actually are. The fact we have the perception we exist as a self, moving through the world in a body we call our own, is what we have to work with. It would be silly to ignore it. Instead, we need to embrace it, learning to work with our habits of mind and internal navigation system in which our affect surfaces emotion while our awareness becomes a natural first choice for navigating its own perceptions. By investigating what moves you—the psychological momentum behind all that you do—you'll begin to discern how you're habitually organizing and prioritizing what you pay attention to and act upon. With each self-discovery comes a clue, an additional piece to the complex puzzle of how your brain ascribes meaning to what it perceives. In turn, you'll learn to spot and work with the mental models and interpretations that may or may not be conducive to your overall aims, and when they aren't, what you can do about it.