065: The Sea Squirt and the Cost of Standing Still
Sep 09, 2025
There’s a small sea creature called the sea squirt that begins life with a brain.
As a larva, it swims freely through the ocean, exploring and searching for the right spot to anchor. Once it finds that spot (a rock, a dock, or a coral surface ), everything changes.
The sea squirt attaches itself, becomes stationary, and begins a complete transformation.
And then?
It digests its own brain.
No longer needing to move or adapt, the sea squirt survives by filtering water, but it gives up the very organ that once allowed it to explore.
The SEL Connection
When I first learned about sea squirts, I thought they were beautiful. But after hearing this detail, I couldn’t see them the same way.
Because here’s the truth: when we stop moving, stretching, and growing, our own mental muscles weaken. Complacency — doing what we’ve always done, staying where we’ve always been — can quietly dull our ability to learn and adapt.
In education, leadership, or even daily routines, it’s easy to “anchor” ourselves and live on autopilot. But growth requires change, and change requires effort. Our brains (and our lives) are healthier when we keep swimming.
Why This Matters
The sea squirt is a startling reminder of what happens when survival becomes the only goal: we lose the spark that makes growth possible.
Social and emotional learning is part of what keeps us moving:
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Awareness to notice when we’ve stalled.
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Resilience to continue through discomfort.
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Curiosity to ask the insightful questions.
These skills are what keep us from digesting our own “mental muscles.”
They help us embrace challenge as the pathway to growth.
Try This Tomorrow
💭 Ask yourself: Where have I settled into autopilot?
💭 Choose one area to stretch. Read something new, try a different routine, or ask a new kind of question in your classroom or team.
💭 Reflect: How did this small change spark new thinking?
So… where in your work or life do you need to stop being a sea squirt and start swimming again?
