This is the full transcript of Chris Jarvis’s TEDx Talk titled ‘Surviving Ain’t Thriving – Break Free From The Herd’ at TEDxDerryLondonderryStudio conference.
Listen to the audio version here:
TRANSCRIPT:
Chris Jarvis – Author
Humans have observed, adored, and imitated animals for thousands of years. For the most part, it’s been a very positive experience for us. Our babies have cute little teddy bears. Our universities have their beloved mascots. Even Halloween parties have the unforgettable cat suits.
If that’s not enough, we created the phrase, “you are what you eat.” How much closer could we get to animals than that? Despite all the wonderful inspiration animals have given us, would it surprise you to learn that the three strongest animal instincts actually weaken our chances of getting what we want in life? As a dose of irony, could you imagine that our highly evolved brains miss the obvious solution hiding right in front of us in plain sight?
If you are feeling uninspired, uncomfortable, or unfulfilled, then this talk may be the key to set you free, to do what you were meant to do without fear, without guilt, and without any further hesitation. By the end of this talk, hopefully, you’ll understand how a preoccupation with surviving sabotages our chances of thriving in both our personal lives and our professional lives. And I am fairly confident that you will have a greater appreciation of the one animal that will guide you on this new path.
What animal, you might ask? Here’s a little hint. Are you here because you want to rise up, elevate, stand above, reach some challenge, climb the corporate ladder, or inspire others to do any of those things? Well, if that’s what you want, what better symbol than the tallest animal on Earth, the giraffe?
You know the giraffe is tall.
But it’s the giraffe’s other three characteristics that will leave a lasting impression on you and inspire you to do things that will help you reach higher.
Maybe you’re asking, what’s wrong with surviving? Well, can you remember the first time you shared your grand plan with someone who responded with the nine most encouraging words in the English language? “What are you, crazy?” It’s a jungle out there. A jungle can be a very scary place. So it’s only natural for us to look for survival tips. And where else to look than the animals in the jungle?
What do armies of ants, troops of baboons, and herds of elephants all have in common? They all subscribe to the first survival strategy, safety in numbers. Safety in numbers is about the greatest good for the greatest number. This is why herds of wildebeest and zebra cross crocodile-infested rivers. The vast majority literally get to enjoy greener pastures on the other side. But for the ones who get eaten, not so much.
Think about your life right now. Do you feel great about where you are, what you’re doing, and who you’re doing it with? Or does it feel like you’re going round and round? Is what you’re doing so important, impactful, and enjoyable that you’re willing to make personal sacrifices to keep going down that path? Or do you want to believe that there’s something more meaningful for you somewhere else?
Unlike the herds that must follow the rains to find grass, giraffes eat leaves from trees. Since trees have roots that can be as deep as the tree is tall, trees can grow in dry, unforgiving places, as long as there’s some unseen water underground. This means the giraffe is free to explore areas that the herds never will.
Maybe you’ve been thinking about going somewhere else. Perhaps you’re considering a path those around you see as impossible. Doesn’t life seem to take us through dry, unforgiving places all the time? Aren’t those journeys through dry, unforgiving places where we learn the valuable lessons that help us to ultimately reach greater heights?
Whether you want to do something completely different, or you like what you’re doing, and you realize that you have to do it differently to get ahead, you’re going to have to break free from the herd. Let the giraffe guide you on your way, away from the masses, so you can go wild.
The second survival instinct is all about us: self-preservation. It’s that feeling deep inside us that demands us to survive. And self-preservation uses pain and fear as its enforcers. Pain causes most of us, most of us, to stop doing something. Fear drives us to seek safety.
Do you remember when we first got these? We no longer had to be sitting at our desks to make a phone call, to access files, or to do research on the internet. We were free!
But what really happened to us? In seconds, we can swipe our way through hundreds, if not thousands, of photos, videos, tweets, posts, snaps, IG Lives, TikToks. In the good old days, we had the freedom to observe things, form our own opinions, test them, and refine our beliefs over time.
Today, our immediate reactions are chiseled into social media granite. When I was a kid, my biggest fear was getting beat up over some argument on the basketball court. My three teenagers, their biggest fear is being canceled for saying anything that rubs anyone the wrong way.
So do you feel freer now that we have these? Do you feel safer? Or do you feel overwhelmed by the size and the influence of the infinite herd on social media? Ask yourself, have you ever been afraid to say or do something because of how other people might respond? How much of ourselves is it okay to sacrifice to avoid pain?
Let’s check with the giraffe. Did you know the giraffe is the only animal that has evolved to become more vulnerable? Every animal protects its most vulnerable area, its neck. A turtle can pull its head back into its shell. A porcupine has spines or quills on the back of its neck. And many different animals have horns. Too big to borrow, too big to climb a tree, and certainly too big to hide, the giraffe would appear to be extremely vulnerable.
But the giraffe doesn’t see itself that way. The giraffe confidently sticks its neck out, but then it can spot danger, seek opportunity, and find nourishment in ways no other animal can.
If you want more out of life, out of your career, what benefit are you likely to get from talking to people who are willing to sacrifice their individuality, their dreams, and their goals for self-preservation? What you want is a smaller group of giraffes who can offer their unique perspectives and superior vision with less of a focus on self-preservation and more on self-actualization.
The third survival impulse, only the strong survive. It’s the most dominant and probably the most dangerous. Every species has its own fierce competition to establish mating rights. Scientists will tell us this is how we ensure that only the strong survive to pass on their genes.
As humans, we may have overachieved a little bit following this one. It may have started when you were young. Did anyone ever tell you not to be such a baby or toughen up, buttercup? Maybe later on, you had a boss or a mentor that told you you needed to be ruthless to get ahead in business?
Well, history, sports, entertainment all reinforce these ultra-competitive beliefs. Finish these statements for me. “The end justify the sweep the.” “If you ain’t cheating, you ain’t.” These are all examples, but let me tell you, taking what you want is a single-serving business plan. The people you work with will never come back.
For obvious reasons, the giraffe is not into cutthroat business models. As an alternative, consider that the giraffe has the largest heart of any land mammal. This extra-large heart is necessary to pump blood from the heart up the six-foot neck to the brain. Without a heart, the giraffe wouldn’t be able to keep its head up, and it would have no vision.
So when you’re taking on risky new endeavors, challenging the status quo, or standing up for something or someone, it’ll be your big heart that will attract other people to stand by your side and help you along the way. The giraffe shows us inspiring others is a much more sustainable strategy than biting someone’s head off.
As human beings, we have the wonderful combination of animal instincts and our formidable brains. Our instincts help us to stay alive, while our imagination allows us to imagine better ways to live and to thrive. But when our emotions, our fears, and our pain kick our animal instincts into overdrive, we have a tendency to revert to old behaviors, like returning to the safety of the herd.
If we want to evolve and stand above, like our friend the giraffe, we need to look for new answers. And to do so, I leave you with four questions: the where, who, what, and when. Where do you want to go? This could be a place to live, a new career, the front line of a cause that’s important to you, or it could be to a state of better physical, mental, or spiritual health. If you could be a migrating wildebeest or a free-range giraffe, what would you rather be? Where do you want to go?
Number two, who could you ask for help? It can be scary to share our dreams, and even scarier to ask for help. Fear of rejection stops most in the herd from asking for help. So ask yourself, who will encourage you on your journey and not try and hold you back? The giraffe embraces its vulnerability and sticks its neck way out, and so can you. Who are you going to ask?
The third question is the what. What do you need to make all of this possible? Do you need a certain amount of money, knowledge, experience? Do you need encouragement or support? The giraffe’s big heart is what makes its vision possible. Having a purpose will drive you to overcome obstacles, and it will inspire others to help you. What do you need to make your journey a success? Share it.
And the last is number four, when. When will you take the first step on your new journey? As soon as this talk ends, I challenge you to send an email, a text, a direct message, or old school, make a phone call to someone who may inspire you to take that step and make your plan a reality.
Your answers to these four questions should unburden you from the weight of surviving and free you to think about, talk about, and explore new paths toward your new thriving. The next time you’re feeling stuck, uninspired, uncomfortable, unfulfilled, follow our guide and get uncaged.
When you finally get to go wild, you’ll be able to stand out, stand above, and reach greater heights, and you will inspire others to do the same. When you are vulnerable enough to follow your big heart, elevate your perspective, see a better path, and be the giraffe.