Have you ever wondered why some people can only be motivated by “the stick” whereas other get extremely discouraged once you question their abilities? Why some people easily start doing tasks while others need coffee to even start thinking about it?
The reason we do anything is because somewhere in our brain, dopamine was released. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter, a chemical that passes impulses between brain cells, telling them to turn on (as in the case of dopamine) or off (in case of, for example, serotonin). The neuron will then determine whether to turn on our off based on the number of “votes” that it has received via neurotransmitters. If an impulse is passed, dopamine is released by a neuron into the synapse, the space between two neurons, to be picked by the receptors of the other neuron. After some time, the dopamine that was released is sucked back.
Now, there is actually always some dopamine in the synapses – this is called basic dopamine, as opposed to phasic dopamine that is released when a stimulus is encountered. Sometimes the dopamine levels drop: some of the dopamine is sucked up so there is less dopamine than normal in the synapse. This happens for example when we make a mistake or get an unpleasant surprise. The level of basic dopamine is largely determined by genetics, and the amount of phasic dopamine released is virtually the same for different people provided that the stimulus is equally important to them.
Basically, the neurons will only turn on after they get enough signals to turn on, that is, after enough dopamine is picked up by the receptors. This level is easier to achieve for people with naturally high basic dopamine, do they come across as energetic and cheerful. People with naturally low dopamine levels might need powerful stimuli or a combination of stimuli to achieve it: coffee, some noise, regular changes in routine.
At this point, you might think that people with high basic dopamine levels are lucky bastards, but there’s is another aspect to it. Apart from motivation, dopamine influences learning: low dopamine levels are required to learn from mistakes and be motivated to do something about them. Here, people with low basic dopamine levels shine: a little drop in dopamine is enough to hit the “dopamine is too low” level, making them extremely efficient at learning. People with high basic dopamine need bigger or more mistakes to learn from them, because a small drop in dopamine levels is not enough for them to notice.
Another aspect is stress. Stressful situations give people with low basic dopamine a welcome boost, so they can function optimally, while in people with high basic dopamine, stress sends dopamine levels through the roof to the point where they cannot think straight.
So as always, you are not broken, and neither are people whose bodies function differently from yours. Which type are you – low or high basic dopamine? Please share it with me and check out my tips for people with high and low basic dopamine