Connect with Each Other

Connect with Each

Other

Diversify Your Monkeysphere

One of the most powerful tools

for changing the world is the

monkeysphere. Robin Dunbar,

an anthropologist, found that

the size of primates’ brains is

directly related to the size of

the social groups they form

(their “monkeysphere”). Based

on the size of a human’s brain,

our number is about 150. This

means that, though we might

meet thousands of people over

the course of our lives, we’re hard-wired

to connect with only 150 people at

a time. Those 150 are the people in

our monkeysphere. Anyone outside

of our monkeysphere is an abstract

concept, not a real live human we

can empathize with or care about.

This can heal war, racism, and

prejudice. You won’t want to bomb

someone who’s in your monkeysphere.

You won’t want to take away someone’s rights if

they’re someone you care about. You won’t hurt

someone for being who they are if they’re your friend.

Look at the gay rights movement. A paradigm shift

is happening as more and more people can say, “My

brother is gay” or “I have a friend who is a

lesbian.” As soon as a gay person is inside your

monkeysphere, the issue of gay rights becomes

personal rather than political - and that’s

when real change begins.

If you diversify your monkeysphere and

encourage others to do the same, we can

heal these control-paradigm ills and create a

connection paradigm.

Make friends with people from different cultures,

connect with people who live differently. Be kind

to people you disagree with. Be yourself, and as

others get to know you, they’ll be diversifying their

monkeyspheres, too.

Connect with others.

Change the world.

Be yoursel