Be an Octopus

Positioning oneself for the long run

Octopus owned by the late Paul Allen. Source: Boat International

I recently watched My Octopus Teacher on Netflix, where filmmaker Craig Foster follows an octopus daily to learn about its behavior and unique qualities, including human-like aspects of its personality. The octopus also displays a remarkable ability to maneuver and protect its position against prey. Some of the qualities that Foster observed are:

Intelligence: Octopuses possess a strong sense of their surroundings and have the ability to adapt to improve their position. With eight arms, each housing its own brain, they can complete tasks more quickly. They are also arguably smarter than dogs.

Adaptability: This was mentioned above, but to expand further they are able to adapt to their surroundings and in almost all environments in the ocean. This makes them Antifragile.

Curiosity: Foster would engage with the octopus directly and it would look him in the eye, and reciprocate when he would engage them. It showed a quality of being curious. Most animals in the wild don’t engage directly with humans, but this octopus did in a relatively short period of time.

Empathy: As mentioned above, the octopus would engage directly with Foster and seemed to understand his emotions, creating a bond that lasted its lifetime.