Joe maps three distinct but interconnected systems: the nervous system (reptilian brain, fight-flight-freeze — the fastest, most primary reaction), the emotional system (mammalian brain, held in the muscles), and the intellect (prefrontal cortex, the world of thoughts). They are layered in a causal chain — the nervous system is the primary quickest reaction, emotions are secondary, intellect is third — but the dance goes both ways. A thought can trigger an emotion which activates the nervous system, or low blood sugar can create agitation that starts a fight and makes everything look binary.
Joe uses the metaphor of pencils bound by rubber bands: you can pull one pencil up, but the others create tension until they’re also raised. Someone who has done deep intellectual or emotional work will experience rapid transformation when they finally address their nervous system, because the “rubber bands” are stretched taut and ready.
Most modalities work on one or two of these systems but miss the third. Effective transformation requires working on all three, taking access points wherever you can get them.
“The nervous system is the primary quickest reaction… you know that from studies where people can react without ever going into the intellect — just have a snake jump at you and you’ll be halfway across the room before you even realize there was a snake.”
Related Concepts
- Three brains of transformation
- Three brains must align to act
- Cultivating all intelligences creates clarity