When I share the title of this blog post, I usually get a chuckle from those who know my book, Beyond the PIG and the APE: Realizing Success and true Happiness.
Obviously, elections in America are all about the Democrats or the Republicans each represented by their animal counterpart — the Donkey or the Elephant.
For those who have not read my book, you probably know someone who:
- “Pursues Instant Gratification” (PIG), despite what happens next.
- “Avoids Painful Experiences” (APE) at all costs, even when it makes more sense to take action.
- Seems unaware of such PIG or APE behavior.
My observations of people over the last 30 years distilled through my varied life experiences as an engineer, photographer, video producer, teacher, multimedia researcher, entrepreneur and life coach can be represented in my simplistic framework which illustrates how we go about making choices. As much as we try to rationalize about using our “rational” thinking mind and logic, we tend to make most of our decisions based on our emotions. My understanding of the human mind attempts to explain ape-like and piggish personalities of today’s political candidates AND ourselves, the voters.
A little bit of reflection will help us to learn how:
- Seeking office and power is more often about one’s inner PIG and Ego, not necessarily about leadership, service or statesmanship.
- The APE typically emerges in politicos when they “beat around the bush” avoiding controversies like troop deployment, industry bailouts, abortion, and gay marriage.
- Behind every candidate (Obama, Romney, local politicians) you can usually find an ecosystem of PIGs, APEs and Egos with their own agendas!
- Being aware of our inner animals — originally designed to help us survive in the wild — helps us be better leaders, voters, partners and parents.
- You can corral your own PIG mentality that asks “what can this candidate do for me and my district?”
- Voters go APE and they don’t bother to show up at the polls.
Beware and be aware of the PIG, APE and the Monkey Mind or the Ego. Merely knowing that they exist and how they can influence your choice-making is very helpful in making more aware and better choices.
For harmony in your life and our world,
Krishna
EgoAwareness.Me | Krishna Pendyala 