Epilogue

Luke decided to major in computer science to follow in dad’s footsteps. In his first year of college he returned home for Thanksgiving holiday with lots of energy for his schoolwork and some frustration on one particular project. Luke was in the middle of a group project to build software to perform student billing at his college. The best team project would be given to the college information technology group to be incorporated into the billing system used by the college. Luke expressed frustration that his team was not functioning well. Luke’s team was called The Sprinters and was composed of four people. Luke and Sue got along well and Tom and Terry got along well, but the team could not operate as a whole.

Luke and Sue were both politically liberal and thrived on adventure and spontaneity. Tom and Terry were both politically conservative and preferred low risk well planned activities. Luke was desperate to break the team log-jam that blocked consensus. I tried to explain what was happening to The Sprinters:

Our brains are the byproduct of millions of years of evolution. Our ancestors spent millions of years below the top of the food chain, so they had to observe the world and react with clear and decisive actions in a matter of seconds. Failure to do this could result in being eaten alive. We have a primitive part of our brains and a modern part of our brains. The primitive intuitive part of our brain is 99% of the neurons and the modern rational part is 1%. The primitive part of our brain is responsible for quickly identifying things like friends versus foes and good versus bad. The primitive brain generates lightning quick intuitions that are laced with complete certainty. This optimized survival for our ancestors, although it may spell disaster for modern mankind. After the primitive brain formulates an intuition, our modern brain searches for after-the-fact evidence to support our hastily formed intuitions.

One function of our primitive intuitive brain is to identify the object in our field of view as well as to identify the context or background for the object. This is called “figure versus ground”. The picture on the facing page is ambiguous about figure versus ground. Some people see two faces and other people see one vase. Our intuitive brain struggles to see that the picture can be accurately seen as two faces or a vase, and could also be seen as two faces between a vase. Our primitive intuitive brain cannot see both sides of reality easily and our modern brain (1% of the neurons) is hesitant to overrule our seemingly bulletproof intuitions.

Luke, you have a team with two factions that see the world differently:

Point number one is do not appeal to the logic and rationality of Tom and Terry’s modern brain. Explaining why teamwork is good with evidence and logic is not effective with the primitive brain (99% of the neurons).

Point number two is to appeal to the primitive part of Tom and Terry’s brains. This is best done by getting to know them outside of the classroom project. Do not discuss the project as you meet socially. Prepare yourself to not discuss politics, religion or any other controversial topic during your get-to-know-you social events. Learn about Tom and Terry’s hopes, dreams, hobbies, families, strengths and weaknesses. Share the same about yourself if the topic arises. Be sympathetic and genuinely compassionate towards them and over time a sense of trust will grow in everyone’s primitive brains.

Point number three is that opposites are a necessary part of a strong whole. If the two faces in the picture above were gone, the vase would vanish. You must constantly be aware during your engagements with Tom and Terry that the universe created diversity because it is healthy and productive for individuals and for the species. When liberals and conservatives collaborate, listen and work toward a higher goal, then mountains can be moved.

Point number four is that we must cultivate humility since we need our opposites to be successful and we need to maintain a strong bridge of communication and collaboration with those who are our opposites.

Luke returned to school and implemented most of the four points. The Sprinters came in second place in the billing project competition and all four members received an A for their project grade.

Luke would continue to cultivate humility after college and took pride in the diversity and closeness of his group of friends. Today Luke appreciates face to face interaction with others, working in groups to achieve goals, respects the diverse views of others and has the skills for a happy and successful life.