James Laughlin explains how our threat-detection systems block connection. If someone's posture, tone, or movements read as dangerous, your brain goes defensive. A Zoom call example shows how missing visual cues make us rely more on tone and movement to feel safe.
Your ability to be relatable is your ability to get past a biological barrier. And that is your mammalian brain, the croc brain. Because the reality is that like your stem brain is set up so that you don't die. That's a total function. And if you perceive someone as a threat or if you perceive somebody as a bear or some sort of like non connected calmness then you're going to be resistant to have that connection. There's going to be a hesitancy. Your brain is instinctively like going to put off. So like imagine being on zoom with somebody when they're off camera and they're literally like o okay well my camera's off like it doesn't give you anything. But now you're going to pick up on the tone of voice. Now you're going to take up in my annotation and my speed and make these judgments. As human creatures we're constantly scanning and searching these micro movements and physical bodies to see if we're being attacked by a barrel.
