Give Your Teen Tools to Combat Perfectionism, Procrastination, and Getting Stuck in a Rut Living - Neuro Tip

Neuro Science has now shown us that the brain uses perfectionism, procrastination, and overwhelm to keep us "safe". And "safe" to our brain is alive and breathing. "Safe" means avoiding discomfort and anything that can be perceived as danger. Since most of us do not go around in fear of being chased by a bear and other survival concerns our ancestors used to have (up until not that long ago), our brains translate the fear from new circumstances, new challenges, and new growth as the same kind of danger as being chased by a bear.

STOP blaming yourself and your teen when you see perfectionism, procrastination or stuck in a rut living. START realizing this is the brain doing its job. Before I got into the Neuro Coaching world I spent so much of my thoughts on trying to "do better" because I held myself to a high standard and I just "should" be able to "do better". I spent a lot of thoughts on guilt and letting myself know I was underperforming where I thought I should be. Now I have shifted how I talk to myself and what I believe about myself. Now I know that procrastination, perfectionism, and overwhelm (which leads to stuck in a rut living) are just natural parts of how our brains function. Now these things are invitations to lean in and figure out WHAT MY BRAIN IS PROTECTING ME FROM.

Most people trigger one of the three. You can probably already identify which one you and your teen lean towards (procrastination, perfectionism or overwhelm).

Next time you see one of these big three stop and ask yourself, "What is my brain protecting me from?". And next time you see it in your teen, instead of treating the symptom get curious what is triggering that response. You will not fix the symptom longterm until the root is dealt with.