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Chapter 15
Dr Lee Rice, Dr Elaine Fox, and Dr Tara Swart
In the early days of starting the business, I looked extensively at the physical manifestations of performance, little was known about the brain. These individuals through their brilliant work made me really think about the power of the brain and its ability to change your behaviour.
Dr Lee Rice introduced me to the notion that attitude, behaviours and environment can cause changes that affect the way your genes work. This was my first introduction to epigenetics and ignited my fascination with neuroscience. For over 20 years, Elaine Fox has dedicated herself to the diverse ways in which people interpret the world. Her quest has been to illuminate those parts of the brain that allow people to experience joys and fears, fun and worry. The effective mind differs so much among people and the book ‘Rainy Brain, Sunny Brain: The New Science of Optimism and Pessimism’, once again, confirmed many of the things that I had felt instinctively about people.
Tara Swart wrote a book called the ‘The Source’ which is full of practical tips that have helped me take control of my brain to turn some of my desires into reality. Tara has this amazing ability to disseminate simple, pragmatic neuroscience-based messages that change the way people work and that translate to tangible improvements in their life. Tara talks also about abundant thinking being one of the most positive things that you can do rather than thinking about all the negatives. This is difficult for many, but I am a firm believer, like Elaine Fox, in looking at the good things rather than the bad and maintaining a healthy degree of optimism. Tara, like Dr Lee Rice, confirmed that the brain body connection is so important and through neuroplasticity we can modify our brains.
By Harvey Thorneycroft
Chapter 15: Dr Lee Rice, Dr Elaine Fox and Dr Tara Swart
As soon as Dr Lee Rice walked through our door in Haggard Road Twickenham on 1st October 2010, I experienced something that doesn’t happen very often with a person I have never met.
We hugged each other and the way I describe this encounter was like meeting a modern-day disciple. There was a presence about him which was overwhelming, and this was the first person that made me really think about the power of the brain and its ability to change your behaviour.
This man had experienced life and, as we ate dinner that night, he shared some of his wisdom with us. This man had a wonderful optimistic disposition about him that was infectious. I now know that I am naturally drawn towards people like this, but it was interesting to understand the science. I am more accepting now of negativity as equally I understand that that we are not all the same and are governed by different attitudes and environments.
He told me this story about the first job he had after graduation, which was to treat soldiers who had landed on US soil directly after returning from being tortured in POW camps in Vietnam. This shaped his thinking profoundly.
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