PRIMAL needs – What will you get from it?

Is this FOR you?

Take your self-awareness to another notch!

By the end of this article, you will have:

Acknowledged the unconscious drives behind ALL your behaviours, including others’

Connected how these motives are impacting ALL aspects of life

Found the root cause of your behaviours, including the most irrational ones!

Is this like YOU?

� Have you been able to understand people’s motives fully? Including your own?

� When thinking back about some of your behaviours, have you ever thought “What took me then”?

� Have you ever thought, “Why do I care so much about this?” Or even, “Maybe I shouldn’t care so much”?

What will you learn?

– Learn about your PRIMAL needs, and how it impacts all aspects of YOUR life
– Realise how these needs are linked to your behaviours
– Understand how your PRIMAL mind deals with your needs not being met
– Appreciate the shortcomings of an overprotective PRIMAL mind

Reminder – Why learn this?

With this knowledge, you would be in an improved position to:
Increase your self-awareness
Manage any unwanted thoughts or behaviour stemming from your PRIMAL (Emotional) mind

E-motion brings motion !

Reminder – PRIMAL mind: THINKING CENTER, thought process, functions & features

This article is a part of the series about your PRIMAL (Emotional) mind.

The 1rst article introduced what functions & thought processes your PRIMAL mind follows.

The 2nd article demonstrated how your PRIMAL mind works alongside your RATIONAL mind to form your THINKING CENTER.

The 3rd article presented the mind map, how all your brain components work together, with your PRIMAL mind at the core of it.

The 4th article highlighted its 3 temperament features.

Your PRIMAL needs

Your PRIMAL mind (Emotional brain) is in charge of making sure that your needs are met.

→ This means that your behaviours are driven by your PRIMAL intention to fulfil your needs.

Note :
The “execution” of HOW your needs are met, is done by your THINKING CENTER.
It is a mix of PRIMAL & RATIONAL minds, as revealed in this article.

Your needs can be classified by their type: BODY, EMOTIONAL & DIMENSIONAL needs.

Your behaviours are driven by your PRIMAL intention to fulfil your needs.

Body, Emotion & Dimensional Needs

These include ALL the needs necessary for your preservation, growth & and prosperity over your lifespan.

Those PHYSICAL, EMOTIONAL & MATERIAL needs drive your behaviours in ALL areas of your life.

PHYSICAL	EMOTIONAL	MATERIAL
Food & Drink	Connection/Family/Tribe	Shelter
Sleep	Ego/Sense of importance	Territory
Health	Safety/Familiarity	Ownership
“Sex”	Power/Strength
	Parental instinct
	Curiosity/Growth
	“Sex”

Examples of “Territory” need

Example #1: In your workspace, someone is sitting on your chair or your desk!
→ How would you feel?

Example #2: In your profession, how would you feel if someone else took ALL your responsibilities & tasks?
→ Would it feel a bit threatening?

Example #3: Have you ever seen neighbours fighting over garden hedges? There are cases when that dispute violently escalates just for hedges going over a couple of inches.
→ Have you ever seen an episode of “Neighbourhood Wars”?

Link your needs to behaviours

As these needs are quite abstract, how a person acts on these B.E.D. needs is individual to that person.

The B.E.D. needs associated with any behaviour are ONLY & ALWAYS individual to that person.

Examples of B.E.D needs and its behaviours

Behaviour	Linked need	Linked need	Linked need	Linked need
Seeking love (dating/marriage)	Connection Tribe	“Sex”	Ego Importance	Safety Familiarity
Having an intellectual conversation	Ego Importance	Curiosity Growth
Travelling on holiday	Curiosity Growth
Buying a fancy car	Ego Importance	Ownership	Safety Familiarity	“Sex”
Working out with friends	Health	Power Strength	Connection Tribe	Safety Familiarity
Help out charities/people in need	Connection Tribe	Ego importance

Note :

Any linked needs in this example list can be similar to yours, or it can be quite different.

For most behaviours, there can be similarities with other persons.
This is while it remains an individual process tied to each person.

How you act on your B.E.D needs is individual to you

PRIMAL mind dealing with needs

REMINDER – PRIMAL perception

As highlighted in this article, the PRIMAL mind features a thought & conclusion process of:

PRIMAL thought & conclusion process:
FEELINGS + IMPRESSIONS =
= No or LOW RATIONALITY
= 100 % SUBJECTIVE (“ME focused”)

→ There is a possibility that your perception of dangers, threats & attacks may NOT be real or factual.

PRIMAL Function – Protection with F.F.F responses

As highlighted in the same article, for protecting yourself, your mind has F.F.F responses, these are your FIGHT, FLIGHT & FREEZE mechanisms against dangers & threats.

Freeze is to stay still & hope that the threat will go.
➔ It can be avoiding, siding with, or giving in to the “threat”.

Instincts & F.F.F responses are your most natural responses.

These are innate responses to situations linked to a:
– Massive pleasure (Gain)
– HIGH-level threat (Pain)

→ Your PRIMAL (emotional) mind may have you suspecting, screening out DANGER, THREATS & ATTACKS from non-factually threatening situations.

PRIMAL vs danger, threats & attacks

As explained in this article, your PRIMAL (emotional) mind is your personal radar.

Whenever there is a “perceived” DANGER, THREATS & ATTACKS to your needs, your PRIMAL mind gets triggered.

The danger, threats & attacks can be :

Physical:
A punch, a push…

Emotional:
– Someone insults you
– You get into a heated argument
– Someone/something damaging your reputation/image
– Losing your job

This mechanism is explained in length in this article.

PRIMAL vs new situations

One of your PRIMAL mind needs is “Safety/Familiarity”, this can mean that whenever you are in an unfamiliar situation, you may:
→ Feel unsure/unsafe
→ Trigger your PRIMAL (emotional) mind

Examples:
Have you ever felt unsettled or nervous when you:
– Started a new job?
– Attend a new school?
– Joined a new gym/class?

Your PRIMAL mind is triggered to protect you from your perceived potential danger.

PRIMAL needs at work & private life

More examples in work, relationships & personal life:

– Work:
An employee may feel unsettled or even fear for their job security following the hiring of a new line manager.
→ The change in management can “threaten” the need for “Safety/Familiarity”

– Relationships:
Someone suspects the partner of cheating because the partner returned home later than the usual time OR the partner is taking a different route.
→ Any change in the “usual routine” can “threaten” the need for “Safety/Familiarity”
→ The cheating suspicion further triggers the PRIMAL mind as it “threatens” the need for “Connection/Tribe”, “Sex” and “Ego/Importance” and

– Private life:
Feeling a bit overwhelmed or anxious ahead of a new house move, thinking about all that has to be done: pack, unpack, clean …
→ The move can be a “threat” to the “Safety/Familiarity”, “Shelter” & “Territory” needs.

Overprotective PRIMAL with F.F.F responses

This process is illustrated in the picture below:

Use updated pic

Given the insecure temperament of the PRIMAL mind, its perception can be inappropriate & unhelpful, as exposed in this article.

This is specifically the case when these PRIMAL perceptions do NOT have ANY factual reasons.

→ These PRIMAL perceptions & triggering can be also valid: intuition mixed with facts can be helpful.

OVER SUSPICIONS & PARANOIA are indicative of an overactive PRIMAL mind, its good intentions are not kept in check by the CITIZEN (Rational) mind.

These OVER SUSPICIONS & PARANOIA can cause the unconscious thinking of “I am under threat, let’s deal with it” and consequently activate the F.F.F defence mechanism.

Your FIGHT, FLIGHT & FREEZE mechanism & responses (F.F.F) is one of the functions of your PRIMAL mind as exposed in this article.

Risks with PRIMAL’s F.F.F responses

Note :

By CONSTANTLY being on the lookout for danger, the constant F.F.F system activation can cause :
– Stress & severe anxiety
– Be on the edge & restless
– Become easily upset or aggressive

➔ This constant F.F.F system activation makes it difficult to regulate your emotions with your RATIONAL mind.

It would also make it much harder for you to leverage all your RATIONAL mind features. Mastering it would allow you to increase your productivity and impact.

Enjoyed this article?

This article is an extract from the Emotional intelligence workshop.

This workshop is a transformative blend of relaxation, mind management & communication tools & techniques. 

Designed to release your best, these workshops deliver you the methods to :
Become more relaxed & reduce your stress
Be in charge of your emotions & increase your well-being
Develop your leadership & influence

→ For any questions about these courses, you can schedule your FREE discovery call to find out more.

Up until next time, go learn & go RELEASE YOUR BEST !!!