The Lesson of the Pine Caterpillar

Pine caterpillars mindlessly follow one other, wreaking havoc on the forests they inhabit, oblivious to the harm they cause.

Pine processionary caterpillars, scientifically Thaumetopoea pityocampa.

They are often referred to as "Bag Worms" for the massive web-shaped silk balls they weave in pine trees. One of the most destructive of insects, they can (and do) defoliate vast tracts of pine trees due to their large numbers and voracious appetite.

Prolific breeders, a single female can lay you to 300 eggs in a single cluster, making it difficult, if not impossible, to halt their relentless pursuit of food.

But there's an interesting characteristic of the Pine Caterpillar that highlights an important leadership lesson we should all learn. (Of course, there's a leadership lesson here - there's always a leadership lesson to learn.)

This creature gets its name, in part, from its mode of travel.

A procession, by definition, is a number of people (or in this case insects) moving forward in an orderly fashion. The pine processionary caterpillar tends to travel in this fashion, orderly, in a straight line, one following the other. Lemmings are known to act in a similar fashion (as are some humans - more on that in a bit).

Here's an interesting tidbit, and where the lesson begins.

if you take a group of pine caterpillars and line them up in a circle, they will mindlessly follow one another in a perpetual circular motion. Even if you place food in the middle of the circle, they will not deviate from their path and will continue to circle as a cohesive group until they die.

It's a scientific concept known as Herd Mind.

Let that sink in.

Herd, mob, or pack mentality describes how people can be influenced by the majority. It's also known as groupthink, deindividuation, or (as author Douglas Murray calls it) the "Madness of Crowds."

Someone else is doing the thinking, the leading. Everyone else, the vast majority, are simply saying, doing, and believing as they are told.

They are pine caterpillars, lemmings, cattle, sheep, mindless servants of the herd.

We've seen this time and time again throughout history.

For two or three decades, it was vogue to smoke cigarettes. It was glamorized in movies, TV & radio commercials, and print advertising. No one thought to ask if this was dangerous or not. They simply followed the crowd.

Voting based on a political ideology is another example of Herd Mind. People tend to "vote the party line" with little or no thought to what they believe, why they believe it, or whether or not the stands a political party are taking are actually in the best interest of the nation.

Other examples include the Tickle Me Elmo craze of the mid-1990s, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday. People mindlessly buying the latest "craze" or simply "getting a deal" while buying things they really don't want or need.

Like it or not, we also see Herd Mind in sports, fashion, religion, and culture. How we make decisions, judgments, or even form opinions can be influenced, often swayed, by groupthink.

There's a dark side to the Herd Mind as well.

We've seen this recently played out in the Black Lives Matter demonstrations and riots, the January 6th incursion, and the ongoing Abortion Rights debate. People mindlessly follow the herd, engaging in random acts of destruction, looting, property damage, and harming others who look, think, or act differently.

Like the pine caterpillar, they are oblivious to the damage and destruction they leave in their wake and the lives that are harmed in the process.

We also see this in Woke Culture today, as well as in the Climate Change and Gender Ideology movements, with people mindlessly embracing an idea or movement simply because everyone else is doing it. It's popular. It gives you a sense of connection, of belonging. Never questioning, only accepting.

Thinking, saying, doing, and becoming just like everyone else.

You feel as if you're part of a movement making a difference.

But are you...really?

Here's an interesting fact about the Herd Mind.

You feel like you're "in control" when in fact you're not. You can't be "in control" when you're part of the Herd. You simply follow the caterpillar in front of you and keep marching in a circle.

One of the often overlooked elements of Herd Mind is the fact that independent thought is forbidden. You're not allowed to think for yourself. You're not allowed to question what you're being told to think, say, or do.

Groupthink is characterized by the masses being manipulated and controlled by an individual or small group of people at the top who have convinced you THEY are right and everyone else is wrong. Everyone mindlessly parrots the same slogans and catchphrases, never pausing to think for themselves.

Like the pine caterpillar, you keep moving in a circle, following the herd, and you end up being oblivious to the harm you're causing.

How does this help anyone learn, grow, improve, and become a better version of themselves?

It doesn't.

And sadly millions of lives are mindlessly enslaved in Groupthink, unwilling to think for themselves, to question what they believe and why. They will live their lives on autopilot, lockstep with the caterpillar in front of them, relentlessly marching in a circle, oblivious to what else is available to them.

If you're simply following the Herd, you're championing a popular cause that may not be your own.

But, it doesn't have to be that way.

My first foray into the world of martial arts was Karate. Herd Mind immediately sat in and I believed my instructor who told me that Karate was superior to any and every other form of martial arts being taught. I looked down on other martial arts styles and practitioners, seeing them as inferior.

That is, until I allowed myself to question, to ask if there was something more I could learn from studying other styles and systems. My willingness to question, to challenge the mindless status quo thinking of the Herd, opened my eyes to see what I had blinded myself to by my limited thinking.

Once I started to think for myself, to be open to hearing a different perspective, to learn how to do something in a new or different way, I discovered there was SO much more available to me than just Karate.

Or, I could have simply been a caterpillar and mindlessly walked in a circle the rest of my life, missing out on everything else around me, within my grasp, but oblivious to it because I was committed to the Herd Mind.

Today, I run the United States Martial Arts Hall of Fame and each year we gather to honor some amazing individuals at our black tie event. But we also host a national training camp where we celebrate the incredible diversity of the martial arts. 15 master-level instructors each year, teaching a different martial arts discipline, and everyone in attendance open and willing to hear a different opinion, learn a different style or system, and continually stretch our thinking and abilities.

So, what's the point?

As we think, we become.

When we quit thinking, we quit becoming.

The Herd Mind robs us of our ability to think and act for ourselves. We take on a cause that's popular, trendy, or we simply want to "fit in" or don't want to be "canceled" by Culture.

This is following, not leading.

You were not put on this earth to follow. You were put on this earth to lead. You were created to be a creator, one who inspires, builds, fashions, and innovates.

You were not put on this earth to champion another person's cause, but to champion your own. To find and fulfill your purpose, to change things for the better, and to equip and inspire others to rise to their full potential and achieve their passion and calling.

How much better would the world around us be if we all did that?

Black Belt Leaders know what they believe, and why. But, they are open to hearing dissenting opinions. This is how we learn and grow, or gain a different perspective. This is also how we demonstrate we value people who may see or view the world differently than we do.

Where beliefs or opinions don't align, they agree to disagree, but do so respectfully, and peacefully, and they still value the other person.

Black Belt Leaders know what they believe, and why. They can articulate it, and defend it, but remain open to new information because they are also willing to admit when they are wrong.

Black Belt Leaders don't demand everyone see the world the same way they do. They don't try to force their ideology on others or demand their mindless allegiance or support. That's authoritarianism, it's Herd Mind.

They don't "cancel" people who see or view the world in a different way. But, they expect other people to reciprocate in like manner.

Individuality is important, it's essential.

They focus on what UNITES us as a people rather than what divides us as individuals. They respect everyone, regardless of race, color, religion, sex, creed, or national origin...believing we are all part of ONE RACE, the Human Race, and we're uniquely created with our own gifts and talents.

Black Belt Leaders are independent thinkers. They think for themselves. They ask questions, consider information, weigh options, and evaluate alternatives. But they think, choose, and act for themselves.

They celebrate their wins, learn from their losses, and willingly share their wisdom with others so they don't have to make the same mistakes they did to experience more success in life.

They refuse to be Pine Caterpillars...and so should you.