Human Connection in History..

A Brief History of Social Connection

Our early ancestors who stayed alone were lucky to survive for long.

Those who stayed in groups were most likely to survive. Being part of a community became the difference between life and death. Over generations, we developed the skills to communicate with each other. In our early days this gave us protection against predators and allowed us to collaborate to get water, food, shelter and other protections that we needed to survive.

However, conflict within these groups was not uncommon and often put the groups at risk. As a result, our ancestors realised that the benefits of social connection went beyond the basics of survival. They realised that we all have different skills, personalities and that conflict resolution in order to live harmoniously was crucial to our survival. As our brain developed, we begun to develop more complex language skills and an understanding of emotions. Every behaviour involved other human beings and members of the community. It was indeed this mutual cooperation that kept our species thriving. By working together, they were able to solve problems easier, through shared knowledge and skills.

"Being socially connected is our brain's lifelong passion," Matthew Lieberman, UCLA Professor and Author of Social: Why Our Brains are Wired to Connect (2013)

Staying Alone

And what of our ancestors who did stay alone? In the most part, research has found that they struggled, unable to survive the harsh conditions in isolation. Researchers at the University of Oxford have traced back the origins of a feeling of anxiety and distress to those who were separated from the group. This is a feeling that we experience in a modern day context as feeling lonely. Perhaps then, it could be that loneliness is evolutionary? Much like feeling hungry and needing to eat, perhaps feeling lonely is our body telling us when we are disconnected from others and in need of social connection.

In December 2016, I felt disconnected and lost. When I began the 100 Coffee Project, meeting new people and having more purpose removed that feeling. I had more energy, was more focused and I was much happier. In hindsight it seems obvious. Thousands of years ago, if our ancestors felt better after connecting with others, why wouldn’t we feel better now?

Do you have a story of feeling disconnected and then finding connection through others or a new community? Feel free to comment or send me an email.

Next weeks edition will cover our challenge of focussing on convenience over connection.

Thanks for your support - see you next week!

Cheers

Chris

chris@100coffeemovement.com