What if some of the very things that make us human — our survival-focused brain, our adaptability, and our need to belong — are also what make modern life so difficult? Jonathan takes note of the fundamental mismatch between our ancient wiring and our modern world, discusses human nature and needs, and the role of our mind in meeting those needs in the face of what he calls The Human Predicament.
This second episode delves deeper into the biological, cultural, and psychological programming introduced in Episode 0, exploring how our survival-oriented brain creates the very angst, friction, and struggle we seek to avoid. Jonathan explains that our central nervous system is essentially running stone age software in a modern world, leading to chronic stress, competing agendas, and the nagging feeling that nothing is ever enough.
Along the way, he introduces listeners to the human Mind — our inner travel guide, the interpreter of our experiences, and the party responsible for getting our needs met in the midst of a culture that thrives on making sure we persistently want and in a physical world that couldn’t care less about what we want.
Reaching all the way back to a lesson he learned in fourth grade and then forward to such modern-day topics as neuroplasticity and epigenomics, Jonathan illustrates how our hard-wired predisposition to adapt makes us so susceptible to being programmed to never be satisfied.
Through relatable examples and scientific insights, Jonathan shows how understanding ourselves — human nature — and the environments in which we live, is the key to an extraordinary life — a life of greater ease and meaning.
It’s not about fixing ourselves — we’re not broken. We simply need to be “read-in” — to compassionately recognize our humanity, appreciate how our cultural environment exploits it, and to open our Mind to embracing versus resisting these realities.