Yes, I am referring to the movie “Where the Wild Things Are.”  

The movie’s hero is a young man trying to understand the impulses he feels. He suddenly finds himself in a new and previously unknown world that is populated by a community of Wild Things.

The movie may be imaginary, but it is an allegory based on cold, hard, objective scientific studies. Where are the Wild Things? They are in each of us. Neurologists, economists, psychologists, and other researchers tell us the Wild Things are the emotional feelings and impulses that “pop” into our consciousness when we find ourselves in various situations. These emotional impulses come from the unknown world of our subconscious.  

The research studies propose that we each have an internal hero – our “self” or “I." If our “I” makes no effort to control our Wild Thing impulses, then we may “pop off” an email or other message that turns out to be stupid or disastrous when judged from the perspective of a new situation or the context of the big picture.

The research also proposes that each of us must work hard to control our Wild Thing impulses. The key to control is recognizing the importance of a particular situation. The type of emotional reaction that a person experiences is “triggered” by the situation a person perceives. When the situation changes, the emotional reaction changes.  

For illustration, I can recall my anger at an assistant who failed to meet my deadline of 9:30 AM on the 5th.  I “popped” out of my office and was on my way down the hall to his desk to give him a tongue lashing in front of other staff. Before I arrived, I looked at my watch and saw that today was the 4th not the 5th. The situation had changed. I felt immediate relief for many reasons, but mostly at having not embarrassed myself. Obviously, I did not take time to think before I “popped” out of my office. Thank goodness I had not sent an unwarranted email to the team members working to meet the deadline.  

If our “I” is to have any chance of controlling the Wild Things in us, our “I” must not act on first impulse but take time to think beyond the immediate situation. Fortunately, our “I” has the ability to imagine how the situation might change if other circumstances are taken into account. In my illustration, I should have imagined looking at my watch to check the date before I took off down the hall.

Additionally, our “I” must make the effort to imagine the goal that “I” and colleagues are working to achieve – the building of the fort in the story. You can control your impulsive Wild Things if you make the effort to think and use your imagination before you “pop off” a twit, text, or email.  

The Wild Things - they're in me and you. 

C. Dean Little is an attorney and principal at Blank Law + Technology PS. Mr. Little brings more than 30 years of experience and skill as an advocate in complex commercial disputes. His practice emphasizes securities litigation, intellectual property and unfair competition litigation and government civil enforcement proceedings.