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- A Cow Vs. You
Herd animals give us a lot of clues about how we work together.
Priests have much to do with shepherds, as Christianity teaches us.
And much of civilization’s early metaphors had to do with the driving of cattle.
Cattle, as in heads of cattle, as in capital…
Yeah, we could go on forever about the roots of words and where they come from.
But look at this.
This outlines a cow’s flight zone.
How a cow will behave differently based on where you are around the cow.
What will make it run away, or get anxious. Stop moving. Start moving.
Knowing this, it’s easier to drive cattle without making it harder for yourself.
The “point of balance” for a cow is at her shoulders.
If you are closer to the tail of the cow and close to their point of balance, they will move forward.
If you are closer to the head of the cow and close to their point of balance, they will stop moving or move backwards.
Many handlers make the mistake of standing in front of the point of balance while attempting to make an animal move forward in a chute.
Groups of cattle or pigs in a chute will often move forward without prodding when the handler walks past the point of balance in the opposite direction of each animal in the chute.
It is not necessary to prod every animal.
If the animals are moving through the chute by themselves, leave them alone.
We are not so different from cattle.
There are relative positions that make us flee in a particular direction.
Americans are often familiar with the concept of ‘personal space’.
Get too close to someone from Texas, and they will usually move away from you.
Meanwhile, you can practically hug someone from Bangladesh.
Go near a combat veteran who worked in tight spaces, and they’re probably going to try and give themselves a 3 foot radius.
Like with cattle, people often try to prod and push themselves in directions while ignoring the relative positions that would move them in that direction.
If you want a cow to move forward, standing near her head isn’t going to work.
Similarly, you have relative positions that will stop you from moving in a particular direction.
And other positions that will make you move in that direction.
You can’t argue with the wind on a sailboat.
And you can’t argue with people about how they move in response to relative position.
If something isn’t working to move people who you’re to drive in a particular direction, take a step back.
Look around.
What relative positions are you in?
What relative position will help them move in the direction you want them to move?
What about for yourself?
Are you trying to “be healthy” while working 12 hour days for someone you don’t like?
Are you trying to land a well-paying corporate career while your heart only soars when you’re hanging off a tree branch for several hours a day?
Whatever direction you want to go in, we have much to learn from the cow.
She moves easily when you don’t micromanage her.
When you stay out of her flight zone and let her move.