🎯 Happiness Chemicals and Steemians' Evolution

It is in the book Leader's Eat Last written by Simon Sinek that I came across the happiness chemicals. In this post, I will relate what I learned specifically about the happiness chemicals to evolution of Steemians.

I read leadership books as a part of my job, I have in fact done a similar post about a book and its practical application in Steemit. That post can be accessed from this link: 🎯 Five Elements of Effective Thinking & Steemit

Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Pull Together and Others Don’t
by Simon Sinek

For borrowing ideas from the author and his book, I thought I will share something about both before proceeding with the subject of this post. Simon Sinek is a motivational speaker who you've probably seen a few times in TED. His TED talk on How Great Leaders Inspire Action is one of the most popular presentation of all time. He started in marketing consultancy working for various advertising and marketing agencies, he did quite a few speaking gigs at TED, was a graduate school professor at Columbia, does consultancy work for big corporations, and has written several leadership books challenging the more popular, and traditional styles of leadership.

In Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Pull Together and Others Don’t (best seller lists of the Wall Street Journal and The New York Times) he discussed two sets of chemicals that triggers our happiness. These are:

• Selfish chemicals - Endorphin and Dopamine which help us in getting things done and achieving more.
• Selfless chemicals - Serotonin and Oxytocin which make our social bonds stronger and allows us to create deeper connection and collaborate.

I will use these chemicals to describe my observations about how most Steemians evolve. And how those who do not eventually fail.

Here is the author in a video giving a summary of the book:

Endorphin - Mask Pain

"Endorphins are produced as a response to certain stimuli, especially stress, fear or pain."

"Endorphins block pain, but they're also responsible for our feelings of pleasure. It's widely believed that these feelings of pleasure exist to let us know when we've had enough of a good thing -- like food, sex or even companionship -- and also to encourage us to go after that good thing in order to feel the associated pleasure."

"Intriguingly, endorphins (or a lack thereof) may be responsible for certain forms of mental illness such as obsessive-compulsive disorder. When you, the average person, are washing your hands, there's a point when you register that the task has been satisfactorily completed. If endorphins are at least partly responsible for saying "when," a person who doesn't have enough may never receive the mental cue to stop washing his or her hands and will continue until that signal is received." - Quoted from Source

One of the reasons why I joined Steemit is to break my addiction to unhappy chemicals. This was a break from the monotony of my life at work. Endorphins is also released when you go for a walk or meditate after being stressed out. Steemit and writing in general is a form of meditation for me. Here I can be me, and not the other personality I created to fit in in the world.

We all have different reasons for joining this platform. But whatever yours are, chances are great that in the beginning, it is for yourself - selfish. I am not one to judge, and I am not saying this to do so. Even if your intent from the start is to come here to help others, you were originally going to do so for your own satisfaction. Not saying that there is anything wrong with that. What is wrong is not evolving from that - to say, truly helping others because you know more about them as human beings, or being part of a community you truly want to advocate. From then, this stops being about you.

For me, this evolves from being a break for myself, to being a break for others too. I have since started to exert a bit more effort to share contents that I feel may benefit others in their journey through Steemit, and in life itself. I still get the benefit of this being an escape - but my hope is that my posts provides both escape and value for others too.

Dopamine - Achieve Goals

"Dopamine release tells the brain that whatever it just experienced is worth getting more of. And that helps animals (including people) change their behaviors in ways that will help them attain more of the rewarding item or experience."

"Because of its roles in reward and reinforcement, dopamine also helps animals focus on things. Anything that’s rewarding, after all, is usually well worth our attention."

"But dopamine has a more sinister side. Drugs such as cocaine, nicotine and heroin cause huge boosts in dopamine. The “high” people feel when they use drugs comes partly from that dopamine spike. And that prompts people to seek out those drugs again and again — even though they are harmful. Indeed, the brain “reward” associated with that high can lead to drug abuse and eventually to addiction." - Quoted from Source

The instant gratification from dollar amount from upvotes is likely what kept most people in Steemit in their first couple of weeks, maybe even for couple of months. I have my share of selfish acts of abusive self-voting in the past. I see nothing wrong with upvoting your own post, specially if those are articles where you've spent time, energy, and creativity. This can be specially true for people who are heavily invested in the platform.

At some point I posted about a Steemian who never upvotes anybody else's post, and spends his precious upvotes exclusively for his own posts and comments. He comments a lot though, nothing offensive or irritating, but mostly no connection to the original post. I am ashamed of myself for even exerting effort to post about him. I shouldn't have done that. I still look at Steemd though and check on others' activities and make decisions on who I will support from their attitude towards the platform.

I still upvote my posts, but I have long stopped upvoting my comments. I let my VP drain down as low as <70% to share the love. My SP still quite low at 500, but am planning to invest so I can support more deserving authors.

Serotonin - Feeling of Pride

"Serotonin flows when you feel significant or important. Loneliness and depression appears when serotonin is absent. It’s perhaps one reason why people fall into gang and criminal activity — the culture brings experiences that facilitate serotonin release. Unhealthy attention-seeking behavior can also be a cry for what serotonin brings. Princeton neuro-scientist Barry Jacobs explains that most antidepressants focus on the production of serotonin."

"Reflecting on past significant achievements allows the brain to re-live the experience. Our brain has trouble telling the difference between what’s real and imagined, so it produces serotonin in both cases. It’s another reason why gratitude practices are popular. They remind us that we are valued and have much to value in life. If you need a serotonin boost during a stressful day, take a few moments to reflect on a past achievements and victories." - Quoted from Source

The real evolution starts here. When you become truly a part of the community. At this point you would have been recognized by the community in many ways - and you have done your own share of recognition of other Steemians. The fact that you got here, when you feel that the community got your back must mean that the rest of the community feels the same way about you. That at one point or another, they felt you had their back.

At this point you must also be engaging a lot, leaving meaningful comments, joining discord servers, participating in challenges and contests. From here you have some really good memories of rewards, acknowledgement, and recognition.

Oxytocin - Love

"Oxytocin creates intimacy, trust, and builds healthy relationships. It’s released by men and women during orgasm, and by mothers during childbirth and breastfeeding. Animals will reject their offspring when the release of oxytocin is blocked. Oxytocin increases fidelity; men in monogamous relationships who were given a boost of oxytocin interacted with single women at a greater physical distance then men who weren’t given any oxytocin. The cultivation of oxytocin is essential for creating strong bonds and improved social interactions."

"Often referred to as the cuddle hormone, a simple way to keep oxytocin flowing is to give someone a hug. Dr. Paul Zak explains that inter-personal touch not only only raises oxytocin, but reduces cardiovascular stress and improves the immune system; rather than just a hand shake, go in for the hug. Dr. Zak recommends eight hugs each day."

"When someone receives a gift, their oxytocin levels can rise. You can strengthen work and personal relationships through a simple birthday or anniversary gift." - Quoted from Source

At this point you would have developed deeper ties with the community, you would have participated in a meet-up, or a community sponsored event. You feel loved and you love the community, and individuals within the community in return.

You become truly concerned about #steemians-inneed, and you would do all that you can to support, in return you develop an expectation that they would do the same for you.

Credits
Cover Photo Background: Source
Happy Chemicals Info-graphic: Source

References
Hacking Into Your Happy Chemicals
Simon Sinek