Guide To Survival

understand yourselfguideunderstand others

1: Survival

Conrad Lin

February 4, 2024

4 minute read

Whether you're exploring this perspective to understand yourself better or to empathize with someone else's viewpoint, this guide is here to help. Remember, this perspective is just one way of looking at the world, and it's normal for us or others to experience it at different times in our lives. Think of this as a window into how we or they might be thinking and feeling.

Introduction

From the 'Survival' perspective, life is a vivid tapestry of sensations – seeing, feeling, smelling, and hearing the world around us in vibrant detail. Our basic instincts guide us: hunger, curiosity, fear, or the thrill of attraction. We're driven by a simple yet powerful motive: to seek pleasure and avoid pain.

Whether it's satisfying our hunger, finding warmth, or escaping discomfort, our focus is on fulfilling these immediate needs and desires. Life, in its essence, is about addressing these needs and relishing the feeling of contentment that comes with it.

How This Perspective Develops

Our journey in the 'Survival' perspective is rooted in our most basic sensory experiences. From the moment we start interacting with the world, we're guided by our instinctual responses to it. These instincts are our body's way of telling us what we need and don't need.

As we navigate through life, our focus is primarily on addressing these immediate, physical needs – the need to eat when we're hungry, to rest when we're tired, to seek shelter and warmth, or to respond to our natural curiosities and attractions.

Historical Context

The 'Survival' perspective is deeply rooted in our ancestral past, tracing back to the era of small survival bands around 100,000 years ago. The primary focus during this period was doing whatever was necessary to survive.

People lived with an impulsive and reactive mentality, fully immersed in the present moment. The overarching goal was to acquire physiological necessities such as food, water, and shelter. The methods for acquiring these necessities were often straightforward and based on ease, including scavenging and utilizing readily available resources.

Modern Context

In the modern day, we tap into the 'Survival' perspective whenever we have a basic need that is not being fulfilled and we can do something about it ourselves.

Think about the last time you were truly starving, sleep-deprived, or had to go to the washroom very badly. All we can do is to react to that situation, and if urgent enough, relieve ourselves at whatever cost. Long-term exposure to this perspective can happen in impoverished communities where basic needs are hardly met.

Strengths and Challenges

When we're in the 'Survival' perspective, we have a keen awareness of our physical needs and are usually very good at addressing them. We're often in tune with our bodies and can respond quickly to what we need. This instinctual awareness helps us pursue our basic well-being.

However, this perspective can also bring challenges. Our focus on immediate needs might make it hard for us to plan for the future or to see the bigger picture. We might struggle with feelings that arise when our needs aren't met, or find it hard to move beyond our basic instincts to more complex emotional or intellectual pursuits.

Unlock Your Potential

To be your best self in the 'Survival' perspective means acknowledging and respecting our basic needs. It's important to recognize that taking care of these needs is a valid and necessary part of life. We can live better when we accept and respond to our instincts in a balanced way, ensuring that while our immediate needs are met, we're also open to growth beyond them.

Is It Time To Level Up?

If you're feeling that you've satisfied all the basic needs that you can do for yourself and are starting to wonder what's next, it might be time to explore new perspectives. The next step could be moving towards the 'Dependency' perspective, where relationships and emotional connections can support you in your quest for survival.

If you find yourself struggling to get your basic needs met, it could be a signal to seek out others to depend on, which the 'Dependency' perspective can help.