I went to college for TEN YEARS to understand the mind (no, I’m not a brain surgeon, I’m just a slow learner). But no matter how long I waited for someone to give me the keys to psychology, I was never really taught how the mind actually functions or what its purpose is. Then I realized, it’s probably because we don’t really know! So I made my own system by taking the laws of physics and applying them to the mind, and boiled it all down to a four-stroke engine.
Yep, your mind is a lawnmower.
That might feel pretty alienating and cold, like I’m trying to strip away your sense of individuality and control. But our need to be unique and in control is exactly what got us so confused in the first place, because if everything is unique, nothing can be nailed down into a system. What’s wrong with not nailing it down? Well, we are rapidly approaching the Anthropocene, and the very fate of the planet hinges on what humans will do next with our minds. Unless we get a handle on our heads, we’re going to find ourselves stacked up in wheelbarrows by some guy shouting “Bring out your dead!” and I don’t like wheelbarrows or corpses, or being a corpse in a wheelbarrow.
A Summary of Mental Combustion
Mental combustion, just like physical and mechanical combustion, is a four-stroke process of intake, compression, power, and exhaust. This cycle involves fuel, an oxidizer, oil, a fuel pump, and a spark. In combination, these elements enable us to generate work to turn the axle or output shaft of this engine, and fulfill our needs. The various components of our mind’s fuel-to-work mechanism is explained below.
Ready to think mechanically? Let's ignite some insight.
Before we ignite anything, take a moment to see your mind as it is: a complex, beautiful machine—built not just to think, but to move. Every choice, feeling, and insight comes from a four-stroke process beneath the surface. These gears vital to keeping your psychological engine running.
Select a cog to explore what drives you.Although I describe the steps as sequential, it’s important to remember that the first 8 steps really happen all at once. We feel our needs, adhere to a schedule, interact with the environment, behave, perceive and process information, feel motivation to act, and perform work on our needs in one burst. In four stroke engines, all four phases of combustion happen in milliseconds, and the same is true for the mind. The only phase that really takes very long is the exhaust phase.
Brett's book corner
Thermodynamic Psychology
If humans behave based on logic, values, and a desire for good things, then why do we sometimes act so destructively? Why do we feel good about ourselves one day, and bad about ourselves the next? Why are we so driven toward self-sacrifice and service to others? To solve these mysteries and more, we must understand that the mind is a machine, operating under the laws of physics.
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Unlocking the Mind
What if we could understand the mind with the same clarity and precision we use to study physics? Unlocking the Mind explores how thoughts, emotions, and behaviors can be mapped and managed like physical phenomena—offering a path to well-being grounded in science.
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