Why Trump Can’t Stop Performing (And Why You Can’t Either)

You know that feeling when someone asks you a question and you hear yourself perform instead of tell the truth? Now imagine that moment on Air Force One flying out of Beijing with cameras in your face, 17 billionaires behind you, and a nuclear briefcase somewhere on that plane. See, that's where President Trump was yesterday. May 2026, leaving China after 2 days of meetings with China's President Xi Jinping and answering questions about tariffs, Taiwan, and a possible war in Asia. And what he did in that moment is exactly what you and I do, just at a much higher production value. See, this is not a political video. This is a nervous system video. This is a why you keep performing video. See, most people think we have one brain and we make all our decisions through that one brain. But in reality, we have three brains. And I want you to watch this trip through those three brains. See, the first brain, that's your head brain, the storyteller that spins, explains, and justifies. It's supposed to be the logical brain, the one that controls everything, the brain that does the math, does all the language, all the complex thinking. And that's the one that we think controls us. But here's the thing, their second brain is your heart brain, the part of you that knows what it really feels like and who you actually care about. It's the one that makes you feel like you belong in a community. It's the one that makes you cry when you see that puppy dog run up to its owner wagging tail. And then there's your gut brain. See your gut brain down here? It's the instinct that says, "This is safe," or "This is wrong," before you can put words to it at all. See, on this flight, Trump's head brain is doing all the talking. His heart and gut are screaming from the back of the plane. And you're gonna see exactly how that plays out in the next few minutes. If you can feel that split in yourself, your head saying one thing, your heart and gut saying another, and you're tired of watching yourself perform the same scene over and over again, I host a free 30-minute Saturday Reset every week where we actually practice rewiring that autopilot not just talking about it. The links below, you can sign up for free and bring your real life into the room. Now let's go to Beijing. In mid-May 2026, Trump flies to Beijing for a state visit. It's the first U.S. presidential trip to China in almost a decade. He doesn't go alone. He brings a delegation of American oligarchs. Elon Musk, Jensen Huang from Nvidia fly in Air Force One, Tim Cook from Apple, and a whole roll of CEOs whose combined companies are worth close to a trillion dollars. On the agenda with Xi Jinping: the war with Iran, trade and tariffs between the US and China. Billion-dollar US arms package that Taiwan is anxiously watching. See, in Beijing, China gives Trump the full treatment: red carpets, military bands, a grand welcome at the Great Hall of the People, a state banquet. Clear warning from Xi that mishandling Taiwan can lead to clashes or conflict. Now fast forward, the meetings are over, Xi is back in Zhongnanhai. Trump is on Air Force One, at a little podium in front of a blue curtain, reporters cramming into a narrow aisle, cameras rolling. This is the corridor moment between what actually happened in that room and what I'm willing to say out loud. On the record with the whole world watching. See, you have your own version of that corridor. From the tough meeting into the car on your ride home. From the flight with your partner into your kids' bedrooms. From the painful text onto that Zoom call. See, that's the moment I want you to watch on Air Force One. Because it's the same nervous system you live in every day. Let's start with the tariffs. For years, Trump has built his brand on being the tariff guy. He slapped tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars of Chinese goods and bragged about using the tariff as his favorite weapon. Before this trip, traders expected tariff drama. They thought he might threaten new tariffs or at least use them as leverage in talks with Xi. But on Air Force One, a reporter asked if tariffs were raised with Xi, and he said, we really did not bring up tariffs.

Mr. President, did you agree with President Xi to extend that year-long truce on And tariffs? We didn't discuss tariffs. I mean, they're paying tariffs. They're paying substantial tariffs, but we didn't discuss it. You know, before I came along, it was the opposite. We didn't discuss tariffs.

How come?

It wasn't brought up.

Then immediately pivots into a performance, talking about what a great stay he had, how incredible President Xi is, and how wonderful the visit was. Now pause the politics for a second and look at the pattern. Listen to which brain is talking here. That's pure head brain managing the narrative, protecting the brand of tariff man, smoothing the story so it sounds clean. But if you watch his eyes, and his body. You can feel the gut brain underneath. Did I just blink when I promised I'd be tough? And somewhere buried under all that, the heart brain that actually cares what happens to real people if this goes wrong. See, here's the 5-second reflex. Trigger: a question about his signature identity issue. "Tariffs." Then conflict, the image, "I'm the tough tariff man," versus reality, "I didn't push with Xi in the meeting." Then the reflex, protect the character, not the truth, and just downplay it, "We didn't really bring up tariffs." Then throw in praise and feel-good language, and smooth it over. You and I do this all the time, just smaller. See, your partner asks, "Did you bring up the hard topics with your mom?" You say, "Eh, it didn't really come up." Your team asks, "Did you push back on the investor meeting?" You say, "We didn't really get into it, but it was a great meeting." See, that's the same reflex. When reality doesn't match the role we're playing, we choose the line that protects this role. See, in that 5-second window, Trump isn't being strategic, he's being human. He's performing the character instead of being honest about the gap. Now let's talk about Taiwan. Since 1982, under Ronald Reagan's Six Assurances, the US has had a very specific promise: we would not consult with Beijing about arms sales to Taiwan. That was the norm for more than 40 years. On this trip, Trump does something completely different. Before the summit, he tells media he has plans to raise Taiwan and arms sales with Xi. After the meeting, he confirms he did talk about the arms package and then says, "I will make a determination later." on arms sales to Taiwan.

So it sounds to me like you have consulted— Well, I think 1982 is a long way. It was. That's a big far distance. You dispensed with that? No, I didn't say anything about it. But certainly, you know, he brought that up. He talked about that to me, obviously. So what am I going to do, say I don't want to talk to you about it because I have an agreement that was signed in 1982? No, we discussed arms sales too. And what's his request? Taiwan, you know, the whole thing with the arms sales, in great detail actually. And I'll be making decisions. But you know, I think the last thing we need right now is a war that's 9,500 miles away. I think that's the last thing we need. We're doing very well.

He says Xi feels very strongly about Taiwan and he's hearing him out. See, analysts point out that even discussing the arms package with Beijing nudges against the spirit of Reagan's assurance. Taiwan hears this and gets nervous, and that's a $14 billion package that might be at risk. See, from the three brains perspective, this is what misalignment looks like. In power. See, the head brain loves the deal. I can work with anyone. I'm a flexible negotiator. See, the gut brain down here is in a different movie. It knows you're playing with 40+ years of security commitments and a live powder keg in the Taiwan Straits. And the heart brain If it was leading, it would be asking, what actually protects the people who have to live with whatever I say on this plane? But in 5-second reflex, the heart and gut loses the vote to the head brain for performance. And again, pause the geopolitics, watch the reflex, see the trigger sitting across from a powerful counterpart Who has real leverage over you. Trade, Iran, rare earths, AI. The conflict: old commitments and clarity versus desire to be flexible and dealmaker who work it out with anyone. And then the reflex: start moving the boundary lines in real time. I heard him out. I'll think about it. I'll make a determination. You and I do this too. You tell yourself, I would never let my dad speak to my kids that way. Then he visits and you hear him out and your line quietly moves. You tell your team, we don't sell this thing in way that manipulates fear. Then a big client leans on you and suddenly you're promising, "We can be flexible." See, this is another 5-second reflex. When stakes are high and the relationship matters, we negotiate our own values to keep the peace. Then we call it being reasonable. If you've ever watched yourself, do the thing you know you shouldn't, and yes, when your gut is screaming no, laugh along when your heart feels sick. That's the same misalignment playing out in a smaller arena. See, my whole job is helping you retrain that. See, we run a free 30-minute Saturday reset every week where we put your three brains in the same room and rehearse a different 5-second reflex on the stuff that actually matters in your life. If you're done fighting yourself, hit the link and grab a spot. It's completely free. Look one more time at that cabin. See Trump at the mic, rows of CEOs behind him. Elon Musk, Jensen Huang, Tim Cook, Leaders whose companies move markets with a single tweet. They know every camera angle. They know one eye roll on Taiwan, one smirk on tariffs can shave billions off a market cap. So what do they do? They perform. They sit very still, polite. They smile, careful. Neutral faces, nods that say, "We're here, we're serious, and we're stable," even if internally they're thinking, "This is a powder keg." Notice whose nervous system is allowed to speak in that cabin. The head brains are in charge, calculating risks, reading the room, rehearsing talking points. Heart brains are dialed way down. You don't see outrage, you don't see fear, you don't see anyone visibly wrestling with, "Is this okay?" And gut brains? They're on lockdown because one honest flinch could wipe billions off a stock price. When you sit at your family table and keep your face neutral while everything in you says, "This is not fine," you are doing the same thing they are. We've all been trained to turn the volume down on our heart and gut and let the head run the whole show on stage. So what do we do with this? Here's the lie most of us live in: practice makes perfect. Yeah, it doesn't. Practice makes permanent. Trump has been practicing his performances for 50 years. Those CEOs have been practicing theirs for decades. You have been rehearsing yours since before you even had language. Neuroscience is really clear on this. You don't just have one brain in your skull. You've got a thinking brain in your head, a feeling brain in your heart, and an instinctive brain in your gut, each with its own network of neurons and its own job. Most of the time, the head is trying to steer the car by itself while the heart is pumping out emotion and your gut is quietly slamming the brakes or flooring the gas. When those three aren't talking to each other, your autopilot performs. You tell the story you're supposed to tell instead of the truth you actually live in. Every time you get caught off guard and default to the same line, "We didn't really talk about it," "It was a great meeting," "It's fine, it's all good," you're carving that reflex just a little deeper. So I want to give you a different 5-second reflex. For the next time you feel yourself step onto your own Air Force One stage. And here's what a conscious 5-second reflex is. It's 5 seconds where you put your head, your heart, and your gut in the same room long enough to make a different choice. 3 steps. Step 1: Notice the camera and check your gut. Anytime you feel watched, by your partner, your boss, your followers, or that internal critic. Just name it. Camera's on. My body wants to perform. That tightening in the stomach, that little jolt of adrenaline when you feel watched, that's the gut brain saying, "Danger, performance incoming." One breath. Let your gut have a vote. Step 2: Name the character and let your heart tell the truth about who you're about to be. Trump is playing tariff man who somehow didn't talk tariffs. The CEOs are playing calm, unshakable adults who never flinch. Who do you play? Good son? Chill partner? Unshakable leader, strong dad, always fine woman. In that 5 seconds, say it to yourself, "Oh, I'm about to play the good son again," or "Here comes the unshakable leader." Your head might be fine with that role. Your heart usually isn't. And when you name the character You take one step back from it. You're no longer fully inside the costume. Then step 3, one honest micro move where your head serves what your heart and gut already know. That might be, "We brushed past it and I'm actually avoiding that conversation," or, "I'm more unsure than I'm acting right now." Or, "I just moved a line I promised myself I wouldn't." See, the head brain still speaks, but this time it's voicing what the heart and gut are actually feeling. That's a different 5-second reflex. That's you deciding what becomes permanent. If you're tired of watching your head, heart, and gut fight each other, tired of performing on autopilot, and then beating yourself up for it. Come spend 30 minutes with me on Saturday. Every week I run a free 30-minute Saturday Reset where we do this in real time. We slow your nervous system down, let all 3 brains speak, and start rehearsing a different 5-second reflex in the exact situation that usually hijacks you. The link to To sign up is right below the video. It's live, it's free, and if this China trip hits a little too close to home, that's your sign to be in the next one. On that flight out of Beijing, you watched some of the most powerful people on the planet still trapped in their own performances. The cameras almost never turn off them. For you, the camera turns off all the time. In the car, in the shower, on the walk between the hard meeting and your kids' bedrooms. See, that's your window. So here's your assignment. Think of one situation this week where you know you perform. Decide your honest micro move in advance. And the next time you feel that camera click on, instead of rerunning the same old line, the same old script, run the 5-second reflex. So notice, name, and then choose. Practice won't make you perfect, but it will make the new reflex permanent. So if this was helpful, share it with the person in your life who performs the hardest, and I'll see you, and maybe then, at the next Saturday Reset. Please remember to like and subscribe so I can bring more valuable content like this to you.