Cognitive Dominance: A Brain Surgeon's Quest to Out-Think Fear

by Mark McLaughlin, Shawn Coyne

"Brilliant! Paradigm-blasting and profound." - Steven Pressfield, Bestselling author of Gates of Fire and The War of Art The first time he cut open a patient's skull, neurosurgeon Mark McLaughlin found himself confronting a powerful force that his fellow brain surgeons agreed was best never spoken of. But Dr. McLaughlin knew that if he couldn't find a way to cope with this formidable foe, all he had striven for as a physician would be lost. So, with a scientist's analytical precision and a philosopher's worldview, McLaughlin derived and formalized a method by which he could act rationally and confidently under the operating room's lights and in all of the complex relationships in his life, especially under fear's profound influence. With inspiration and guidance from intellectual titans like Rene Descartes, Charles Darwin, William James, Carl Jung, and contemporary thinkers like Nate Zinsser, Jordan Peterson, Iain McGilchrist, and J.K. Rowling, McLaughlin lays out his twenty-year intellectual adventure story. The payoff of his odyssey is as life-changing as it is thrilling. COGNITIVE DOMINANCE : Enhanced situational awareness that facilitates rapid and accurate decision-making under stressful conditions with limited decision-making time.

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction, Self Help, Leadership, Business

352 pages, Paperback

Published November 5, 2019

Reviews

[Evan Micheals · Rating 3 out of 5]

I heard Dr Mark McLaughlin speaking on the Art of Manliness and thought this would be a worthwhile read. This is part memoir and part self help about how he used his knowledge of the brain to understand how to overcome his own anxiety about making mistakes whilst performing brain surgery that could be and have been catastrophic for people who he has operated on. He drew heavily on the work of others such as Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Amos Tversky, Daniel Kahneman, Nassim Taleb, and Jordan Peterson amongst others and provides a fair explanation of their work. The work looks at overcoming you pheres (fears) by identifying them and thinking about the with a rationale and cognitive mind (2.0 based of Tversky and Kahneman’s work). He shows how pheres can be assigned to four quadrants and provides a number of checklist types acronyms. The only quote I recorded was “Myth is a boiling down of ‘what has come to be believed as the way to behave properly to serve oneself best while also serving all those around you’” (p 162). I have a deep interest in Myth and this is as good a sound bites as any as to why myth is important.

It is not terrible, but does not reach great heights either, maybe because I was aware of and had read all the authors he drew upon. I liked his stories about wrestling and the tales of working in a health care environment were professionally familiar. It is a brain chewing gum book reminding me of content I knew. It could have had the same impact without all the detailed neurosurgery war stories and been 100 pages shorter. In saying that the stories were often charming and well written. A fair effort, but not one I would describe to others as ‘must read’.

[Kara Gasiorowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book to read, especially during a pandemic. It took me a long time to get through (about 3-4 months) and I am normally a fast reader. However, it is the kind of book I found myself returning to and rereading certain sections to fully grasp the concepts that he presents. I particularly liked the reference toward the end to Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s Flow- as an OR nurse I am naturally drawn to precise repetition of skill and gradually refining performance- and to read how Dr McLaughlin, a neurosurgeon, could describe how Brain 1.0 and Brain 2.0 interact, specifically in surgical situations while also including other real life examples was so interesting to read and comprehend. I first heard Dr McLaughlin speak about Congnitive Dominance, but reading his book provided much more depth than I could have imagined!

[Tom Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm in two minds about this book.

I began reading this book a while ago and I gave up on it, since then I've decided to actually complete my infinite library of books stored on my kindle (including the ones that include this review). Now a little older and wiser I decided to give this book another go. And oh my goodness, the first quarter is phenomenal. I love how the author is open and humble about his life, how he moved from a morse code physical contact with his father to describe their bond of love and trust to "I have made a minimum of thirty thousand life-and-death decisions in my career" as if it's nothing special. By far so engaging, and I really got revved up for the fear concepts, how we must define our purpose in life and how we define fear to overcome uncertainty.

Then the fallacy of false authority hits.

Right about 25% into the book; it's like having a dinner with your aunt whose really fun and exciting and always making jokes but then she mentions a certain group and you don't think she's joking anymore.

It hurts.

You just end up smiling and nodding, with that respect you once had apparent on the surface but deep down the fear begins to swell as you realise that this isn't a neurosurgeon talking anymore, it's a man with a BA in Philosophy.

At least that's what I thought when I first encountered the author's Phere theory, grounded in the substance of Carl Jung's metaphysics. However, a little older and wiser now, I accept that a universal theory of fear that is appicable in it's anticipatory functionality, i.e. it can be used as a predictive tool that is flexible in many situations to dissect particularly difficult emotions to reach the root cause of the response, is worth investing a little time in to explore. So I'll continue to explore the book. After all, my meaning in life is to complete the infinite library.

[Bob Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

I find reading growth books are highly subjective, and highly dependent on your place in life. That being said, this book was objectively excellent. The medical stories are fascinating and the author does a great job of walking you through what's happening so that you can relate. And that's what he does so well - he bring his experience of brain surgery and patient care to your own life experiences. He intentionally balances left-brain logical, intellectual thinking with right-brain emotional, creative energy. The book is called Cognitive Dominance, but it could really be called Harmonizing Your Mind: Break Free From Fear and Engage Your Life. He teaches how to master "reptilian brain" impulses with logical thought processes, mastered by your own worldview, moral center, and higher life order. He includes charts and workflows for the more logical reader, and inspiration for the more creative. He is open and vulnerable, explains what he struggles with, and his personal humility is fully on display. This is one of the few books I feel I need to read again after I have grown, just so I can truly gain what is offered.

I highly recommend this book. I took my time with it, read it over 5 weeks, and alternated between reading and listening to the audiobook. Like any great growth book, it is read by the author. Nothing beats listening to a book read by the person who wrote it. The story of his father utterly broke me down, and many of his stories had strong emotional impact. You'll be better for reading this book.

[Maggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent, exciting read. I highly recommend this book to any individual who wants to better themselves mentally, spiritually, and even physically. Despite if you are into medicine or science, this book provides so many lessons that will motivate you to establish a daily routine, strategically tackle your goals, and how to handle immense pressure in difficult situations. Overall, Dr. McLaughlin did an outstanding job of providing me with useful skills to adopt new habits that have helped me overcome my fears and accept and learn from my failures. I cannot put into words how much I recommend Cognitive Dominance to everyone I know....and don't know! Thank you, Dr. McLaughlin.

[RJ Meagher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dr. McLaughlin uses a brilliant paradigm to break down stress and the unknown into manageable parcels. He uses a an objective approach to dissect subjective matter into recognizable patterns. His clever diagrams and illustrations help define quadrants of fear. We gain a better understanding of the nature and reason for our feelings and thereby gain greater control of them. Dr. McLaughlin provides a pathway to poise and equanimity. It is empowering!

[Taylor Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has taken me longer to read then normal
And that reason is I wanted to read everything at a slower speed and let it all sink in
Amazing book with a lot of helpful knowledge from a true hero himself

Read while at work on Tanker Sarah Desgagnes

[Marc Hutchison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Life is often difficult, bewildering and frightening. This excellent book is about living well.

[Barb Best · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inspiring! Helpful!

[Jeffrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review coming shortly...