Adaptation: The Key to Survival in the Business Jungle

Businesses need to make decisions based on more than just processes. Standard procedures are a good start, but there is a philosophy behind every successful business leader that should never be overlooked. At my company, TARGIT, we have devoted our research to not only staying ahead of the curve with new and exciting Business Intelligence and Analytics technologies, but with how to best foster a perfect synergy between those technologies and the humans who use them.

As such, TARGIT researchers have long been examining how the human brain works. In particular, we've looked at how it works under stress, how it deals with that stress, and, of course, how computers factor in. Once we know this, we can best decide how we, as leaders and managers, can accelerate our businesses. And what we've found is that the key role of the human brain compared to the computer is adaptation.

As a certified skydiver, it seemed natural to move some of this research to the clouds. After all, what could be a more stressful stimulus for the brain than to be hurled out of an airplane at 14,000 feet? After interviewing hundreds of fellow sky divers and cliff jumpers, it was clear that the brain adapts in two distinct ways.

The first is entirely subconscious. Almost 75 percent of skydivers have had the "falling dream" before they ever jump out of a plane. One of the most common recurring dreams, the dreamer experiences the sensation of falling from a great height and always wakes before hitting the ground. This dream isn't based on experience. It's something that has been pre-programed into our ...