I’m going to attempt to explain something me and those close to my social circle call “the brain”. To say it simply, the brain is an irrational response to an emotional stimulus. The best way to explain that is by giving a number of examples.Every one of us (including myself of course) is guilt of making irrational, empty and sometimes potentially harmful decisions that are based on nothing.These are just responses/reactive reflexes to emotions that we have picked up from our social environment.

The degree of one’s emotions varies inversely with one’s knowledge of the facts.
– Bertrand Russell 

Key Points

• “The Brain” is a result of unexpected, sudden events that cause an emotional reaction
• The Brain or Braining is a reactive behavior that serves no extensional purpose
• Being “emotional” isn’t “braining”, braining is the waste of emotional energy
• The best way to avoid the brain is to look for extensional purpose every time we get emotional

The Brain

The best way to explain “The Brain” is by example. Road rage is a result of braining. Someone gets angry and deals with their emotions irrationally. Getting out of the car on a busy road to yell at someone (or worse) accomplishes nothing. There are smaller degrees of the brain. A spouse putting up naked pictures of an ex to “get back at them”. Revenge serves no purpose, it’s just a “brain”.


The reason why it’s called “the brain” is because the human brain sets associations to events and patterns. In order to conserve energy, the brain stores a lot in the subconscious making it ready to be triggered by simple associations. Let’s say you were heating up a grill to cook with at a family barbecue.  If someone switched the hot grill with a cold grill while you weren’t looking, then pushed the grill over onto you, you’d probably jump. Even if the grill isn’t hot, you’d still react the same way. These are unconscious reactions. These are the same reactions that trigger people’s emotions. Unfortunately, many people don’t know how to handle these sudden emotions and just end up braining.

Countering the Brain

Just like any habit, countering the brain requires time and repetition. Consistently asking yourself “okay, what can I do that’s relevant?” whenever you find yourself feeling overwhelmed, emotionally. Braining provides nothing extensional. If I have to split everything with my wife after a divorce and I sell my house for 20 bucks, JUST so she won’t get “the best of me” is a major brain.


Both parties lose for an ego battle. Ego is a huge part of the brain. People who get cut off on the road feel as if they “lost something”, yet nothing has really changed. Think about it. When someone cuts in front of someone else, why do people honk? Does it serve any purpose?? Thinking about a situation objectively and acting to improve the situation should be practiced thought.

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