This document discusses communicating effectively by understanding how the brain operates. It focuses on the SCARF model, which outlines five domains - status, certainty, autonomy, relatedness, and fairness - that activate the brain's reward or threat centers. When these domains are threatened, the brain's threat response is activated, decreasing creativity and problem-solving. But when they provide reward, the brain is more engaged and creative. The document provides examples of how to increase reward and minimize threat in these domains for more effective communication and leadership.

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4-Profit Leadership Forum | September 30 – October 2, 2013
Inverness Hotel & Conference Center | West Englewood, Colorado
COMMUNICATE
WITH THE BRAIN IN MIND

2. The Vision

3. The Reality

4. Communicate
with the Brain in Mind

5. Our Brain is Organized
To Survive

6. To Minimize Threat
AVOID!

7. And to Maximize Reward
APPROACH!

8. Social Interactions
operate the same way
Threat Reward

9. Physical and Social Pain

10. Threat State of Mind
LESS Insight, Creativity
Problem Solving Ability
MORE Risk Averse,
Defensive, Cortisol

11. Reward State of Mind
MORE
• Creative problem solving ability
• Insight
• ENGAGED
• Dopamine

12. The SCARF Model
• Status
• Certainty
• Autonomy
• Relatedness
• Fairness

13. David Rock

14. SCARF Helps
Increase Reward and Minimize Threat
In ourselves and others

15. Status
Pecking Order, Self-Worth,
Feeling Included

16. Status Reward State

17. A decrease in status feels like
a threat to one’s life

18. Threats to Sense of Status
• Easy to accidentally trigger
• Giving advice
• Dismissing an opinion or
minimizing an objection

19. Certainty
The brain is a pattern-recognition machine
constantly trying to predict the near-future

20. Lack of Certainty Generates
an Error Response in the Brain

21. Certainty is satisfying

22. “Creating” Certainty
A leader seeks to increase a sense of
certainty in others when, in fact, there is little

23. Clarity Reduces Uncertainty
Where are we going? How are we getting
there? What should I do?

24. Creating Certainty Milestones
Breaking a complex project into small steps
increases certainty

25. Autonomy: The perception of Choice
The brain likes to predict and have a say in
the future

26. Autonomy
Increased autonomy feels rewarding

27. Reduced Autonomy
The inability to influence outcomes

28. Threats to Autonomy
“They won’t let us work from home anymore.”
“I just want to manage my own team!”

29. Relatedness
Insider or Outsider? Friend or Foe?

30. Relatedness
We like to belong
“Friend” activates empathy in our brains

31. Relatedness Threats
“Foe” is our default state

32. Threats to Relatedness
• Silos
• Us vs. Them
• During
Onboarding

33. Fairness
We have a strong need to be treated fairly
Fairness is in the Eye of the Beholder

34. Lack of Fairness
Lack of fairness generates a significant
threat response and feelings of disgust

35. Unfairness at Work
“There’s a different set of rules for them…”
“I have 10 more years of experience and I’m
getting paid less than the new guy!”

36. “How” Matters More Than
“What”

37. Understand Yourself and
Others
What Triggers Me
What Triggers You
My Behavior &
Form of Expression
Your Behavior & Form
of Expression

38. Creating Clarity Decreases
Uncertainty
• Three things you don’t want to do that could
increase the uncertainty
• Three practical things you want to do to decrease
uncertainty
A. You had to fire a manager and a new one is
being hired from the outside.
B. Sales missed Q1 goal and isn’t on track for Q2.
C. We might be losing a large long-term client.
D. There have been a rash of service failures &
clients are upset.