The Evolution of Consumerism (short but sweet)

The Innocent Folly of Positive Thinking

The other night I chanced across a video on Youtube, featuring a very erudite and articulate scientist called Bruce Lipton. Normally one watches this type of content, get's mildly inspired but then quickly forgets the information as they click off down another digital rabbit hole.

But on this occasion, what - or perhaps how - Mr Lipton delivered his spiel, proved very enlightening. So much so that I thought it worth sharing the main points, with the intention of helping people 'get' a very important part of personal and professional self-development. 

The central theme of the good Dr's delivery was Positive Thinking. More specifically, how dangerous -  and a little tragic  - it is that so many people have been swept up by the great PT movement without knowing the full story. Canonised by The Secret and the central tenet to perhaps every form of personal development content, Positive Thinking seems to have defined a large part of the last decade. Yet for many people, myself included, when used as tool to intentionally create/manifest/acquire certain 'things' we want, PT often proves to be the proverbial chocolate fire guard. 

Before I break down Mr Lipton's explanation of this, let me affirm that I'm all for PT, and am in no way mocking it. It's actually common sense that one should spend his days thinking good, positive things. Especially when working towards a goal or intentional acquisition. But the disappointment and frustration arises when we use it in isolation, and expect the skies to rain money (cars, houses, careers etc..) on us. 

So, here's the rub on why positive thinking is not enough to create the things you want in life, and what we can do really make the changes we want 

// 2 minds are not equal to one //

When we're exercising PT, we're using our mind. Modern physics now proves that those thoughts create energy patterns that affect physics and biology: our inner and outer environment. In other words, it is now scientifically proven and accepted that the world inside and outside of us, at an energy level, moulds around the shape and texture of our thoughts and intentions. 

But there are two parts to the human mind. The conscious and the subconscious. And whilst many people consider these one and the same, the fact is they are two very different entities working on two very, very different levels. 

The conscious mind is what we use to think. Discern. Reason. Choose. Create. Analyse etc. It's what makes us Human. Individual. We are directly connected to it, and can control it at will. Some better than others.  Our subconscious mind however, is quite different. Although it belongs to us, we are only connected to it by association, and in fact it can be most accurately described as a tape player.  

// And this is where it gets very significant //

The subconscious essentially records experience, beliefs and patterns and plays them back, on loop, relentlessly. So we have a thinking mind, and a tape player mind, and the difference is very profound. Firstly, the subconscious is a million times more powerful at processing information than the conscious mind. Second, the subconscious is running our biology 95  - 99% of the time. So regardless of how actively we exercise our conscious mind, its the subconscious that's running the show, 95% of the time. And here's the thing; the subconscious is neither good nor bad. It runs on programs. And its these programs that are either good or bad. It's the programs that this machine is running on that are taking away, or indeed giving, us our behaviours, powers and abilities.

So what is the relevance of this to Positive Thinking?

Positive Thinking is a creative process that comes from the conscious mind . But whilst you're creating and visualising all these wonderful thoughts from the mini processor of the conscious mind, you're competing with the super computer and the programs of the subconscious mind. Which is a million times more powerful, and running the show 95 - 99% of the time!! So if your conscious thoughts and intentions are not supported by equivalent programs in the subconscious mind, which one do you think is going to win?

For example: if you want to have that perfect body and have created HD visualisations and powerful thoughts of you in possession of that body, but your subconscious is running on a program or belief system that doesn't support your ability to active that. It simply isn't going to work. You behaviour will quickly support that program and before you know it you're back where you started, staring down at the scales, laughing back at you.

Now here's the thing; to free up our conscious mind so that we are able to be the creative, pioneering race that we are, the subconscious has learned to run the show automatically. And if we aren't paying attention, which we very rarely are, we don't notice it when the subconscious mind is playing back negative, destructive and counter productive programs to what we are consciously trying to create! Ever met someone who behaves exactly like their parent, although vehemently denies it....there you have it.

So what happens when we do the all the conscious work and PT, and don't get what we want? We blame the outside world. We look for reasons and things 'out there' as the cause, because we miss, or have not been paying attention enough to the fact that its the programs 'in here', being played back by the super computer of the subconscious mind that have been causing us to sabotage and keep us from what we want. 

So once we learn to recognise our self-limiting and self-sabotage programs in the subconscious, we can start to stop blaming 'out there' and start doing the work 'in here' to change those programs, and so start changing our lives.

But here comes the next problem...

Many, if not most of us bought the idea that we can talk to our subconscious mind. That like our conscious mind there is someone directly attached to it; able to listen and reason. Which is where, like PT, the limitations of self-affirmations come in. You can no more have a dialogue with your subconscious (using your conscious mind) than you can stand over a stereo and reason with it to stop playing. The more we try, and oh have I tried in the past, the more frustrated you become, the less confident you are, and the less you believe in your ability to change. And so the sabotage loops on, getting stronger with every fail.

The 'aha...'

There is only one way to manipulate the tape player, and purposely begin to realign your subconscious programming with your conscious PT. And that is, quite simply, to engage it in 'record' mode. 

Knowing how to press record is the absolute basic foundations of intentionally changing our lives. Once we've pressed record and started the reprogramming, PT, self-affirmations and all the other creative conscious manifestation tools we have access to start to work in turbo mode. And you will change your life.

So how do we press record? That's coming next. But if you can't wait and want some immediate help with unearthing your negative programmes, and begin the reprogramming process, we'd standing by to help. 

Click here and drop us a mail, and we'll be in touch to discuss how we can help.

For now. Be Well.

Brilliant. That is all....

Jonah Lehrer: The Origins of Creative Insight & Why You Need Grit from 99% on Vimeo.

Why does the "aha!" moment arrive only after we stop looking for it? At Behance's 99% Conference, Jonah Lehrer explains how creative insight works & what drives incredible achievements.

On SOPA (Seth Godin)

The most frustrating thing for me in the SOPA/PIPA debate now winding down is how unnecessary the whole thing should have been. It occurred to me that we learned a lot about what sort of behaviors make for great leaders and careers. 


The short version: do the opposite. When did we lose Congress? Not just in terms of losing our respect for just about everyone there (one of the least respected careers in the USA) but in the sense that they no longer even pretend to represent our interests or act as we would act if given the chance? I'm not so much angry as saddened that it has come to this. 


 When planning your career, avoid these pitfalls, behaviors evidenced by many elected officials: 


1. In all things, look for money first. Listen to people with money, respond to people with money, justify your actions around money. Worth noting that 47% of those in Congress (House and Senate) are millionaires--an even greater percentage than those that are lawyers. 
2. Embrace the fact that you don't know what you're talking about. Aspire to run systems you don't understand. Compromise over the important issues, but dig in and fight forever over trivia. Along those lines: focus obsessively on the short run. Even though you are virtually assured of re-election, define the long term as "before the next election." 
3. Take months off from your day job (with pay) to actively campaign for a better job. 
4. Blame the system, the other side and your predecessors for the fact that you are not taking brave, independent action. 
5. Avoid developing independent thought and analysis. 
6. Focus on parroting the work of lobbyists and the party line. 
7. When given the choice between being on television or doing hard work, pick television. When a difficult problem shows up, duck. 
8. Try mightily to outlast passionate resistance by quietly ignoring it and waiting for it to go away. 


I'm thrilled that reality has intruded and SOPA is derailed (for now). You probably know more about how the internet works than your senator does. Has he or she called you or asked your insight? I'm disheartened that even when a linchpin shows up in Washington, she is quickly beaten into submission. Where are the lions, the Mr. Smith's and the statesmen who would rather do the people's business than business as usual? Sure, Congress has a marketing problem--largely because they have a problem with the decisions they make and the way that they make them. At least they've left us a useful career guide about what not to do in the real world.

On running and thinking...

5.12.11

I started a list. From no-where. Half way through a half baked trot around the marina. On what I think might be awry with the world. Thought I'd share some....

1.  Listen. Moi?. No-one really seems to listen anymore. So neither do they hear. Listening used to be an art. The world we live in now, is a cacophony. The more we tune in, the less we listen, and the less we hear. And so its no wonder I guess that those who innovate to be heard, are thriving. 

2.  Conversation is yesterdays black. When did dialogue return to sharing symbols? The Yellow pages commercial of 1980 cleverly instructed us to “let your fingers do the talking (or was it walking?)”. Either way, little did they know they’d coined a troubling prophecy. We need to ‘talk’ more. To talk you have to listen. Better still, you have to listen and look at the same time. Which brought me to...

3.  ...the trouble with eyes. When did extended eye contact become a) weird b) threatening or c) flirtatious? I love the eyes. By far the most magical and beautiful part of our anatomy, yet I've noticed how few people really look at one another anymore when talking.  We'd rather stare at the perspex screen of our i-stuff, or into the shadows of our modern insecurities (ooh, topical!).

4.  The collapse of time. Physicists  suggest it actually could be. Is a minute now atomically shorter than a minute then? Intuitively we seem to be aware that it might, and so ferociously invent technology and apps and means and ways of cramming more and more into a minute. Stop multitasking and trying to combat the acceleration of existence! It doesn’t and will never matter how much you do in time. It’s about what you do with time that can really make a difference.

5. Where did Culture go? Words that end in ‘–ics’ have all but diluted the once powerfully enchanting cool aid of real culture.  So much so that we call culturally erudite people ‘vultures!’ It’s a cherishable irony that the men and women of this world, who remain most grounded in there love for the delicate sinews of our diversity, are reframed as carrion seeking monsters. I guess it’s accurate in a certain sense; deeply tragic in another.

I didn’t particularly enjoy this run.  

Cracking the Belief Code

"One of the greatest discoveries a man makes, one of his greatest surprises, is to find he can do what he was afraid he couldn't do"  Henry Ford

In my previous post about Resolutions, I mentioned the potential need to challenge and change any limiting beliefs you might have, that could hinder your chances of conquering some of your goals. The importance of this mustn't be underestimated. And not just for achieving of our ritualistic new year upgrade, but for everything we want in life.

Beliefs are as necessary to us as our physical organs. We cannot exist without them. We need them as parameters to interpret what is happening in our life. One could never be without beliefs, nor would you want to be. What you do want, however, is to consciously decide the beliefs you want working for you. To choose the 'lens' you will view the world through. 

And here your choices are unlimited.

You are not at the mercy of your past experiences, unless you believe that you are. With this new system you are free to break away from any past conditioning or limited circumstances by simply changing your thoughts and beliefs. When you change these you change everything. The future that you will encounter in your life is not preordained, nor does it happen arbitrarily. Your reality is forever being moulded and created from your thoughts and beliefs. Your possible future - and there are literally thousands of possible futures - is being formed by what you think and believe today. The present is the womb by which the future will be born. The future is dynamically alive within you now. You hold within you your own destiny. Change your thoughts and beliefs and you will change your future.

Once you fully recognize the power and influence beliefs have in your life, the next step becomes obvious. Change the beliefs that are limiting and holding you back, and create powerful new beliefs that serve and uplift you, beliefs that will take you wherever you wish to go.

There are three main methods for doing this, and all three should be employed. You can begin by using them individually or in combination with each other. Either way, you will eventually be working with all three.

1) Repattern Your Past

Don't spend time and energy looking back at your life to find out why you have a certain limiting belief. Why bother? To look backward in this way will only lead you into the habit of seeking negative examples that verify your old belief. Your past has been distorted by the lens you have chosen to examine it through. What is accomplished by searching the past with the same old lens, other than to further reinforce that limiting belief already held within you? 

This is why much psychotherapy proves futile, simply miring the patient further in his or her own muck.  A great many of the unsatisfactory conditions in our life have resulted from our becoming frightened or confused during an unpleasant experience. We began to doubt ourselves, and started concentrating upon negative aspects of our lives, thereby eventually creating that imprint within us.  For example, one person, because of an unpleasant experience, begins to doubt his ability to get along with others. So he searches his past with an 'I don't relate well with people' lens, and much to his horror finds many experiences to support this idea. His mind begins to feed on these memories. His remembering becomes highly selective. Without even realizing it, he invents his own history, and furthermore convinces himself that this history represents an accurate picture of who he is. 

However, if this person had journeyed through his memories with the lens, I get along great with people, trying to find a different kind of proof, he would undoubtedly have discovered many instances when he got on very well with others. However you choose to view your life, through whatever lens you have constructed, this will structure and filter your memories, and you will always be able to justify your belief with "proof."  

So in changing beliefs you must practice changing your lens. Look through your past in a new way, looking for new, forgotten or ignored truths. If you lack confidence, for example, search your past for instances when you were confident. If you are honest in this search you will find lots of examples of you performing tasks assuredly. But you must search with the lens, "I'm confident," not the "I lack confidence lens." 

Each lens will produce a different set of examples. There will be numerous examples of both. It all depends upon which you want to emphasize.  In almost all cases of present limitation you have programmed yourself to stress negative aspects relating to that part of your life. We all do it. So to rid yourself of these restrictions, you repattern your past from the present. Whatever your circumstances, use the past as a rich source of power, looking through it for long ignored successes. 

Restructure your past. Reinvent it. Rediscover it. Its like finding a bank account with money that you didn't know you possessed. Whatever you want to become or create in your current life, you can find ample evidence of it already happening to you in the past if you will only change your lens.

The Present is Your Point of Power

Stop for a moment and realize that the present is your point of power. When you are thinking about the past or imagining the future, both these actions happen in the present. When you act upon your life, it takes place in the present. In fact nothing you can do will ever happen outside of the present. So choosing in the present to reframe your past and future is incredibly powerful.  

An example: Pick a positive quality about yourself that you are proud of and absolutely certain you possess. Perhaps that you are caring, loving and compassionate towards others. Now, using your memory, search your past for times when you were not caring, times when you were selfish, mean, unkind and hurtful. Locate a number of these examples. Now imagine yourself lingering on these images each day. Each day you purposely recall these images and feel bad about them. Soon you begin telling yourself that you are indeed mean-spirited and selfish.  If you continued this practice you would literally hypnotize yourself into believing that this selfish, mean-spirited person is who you are, and then you would begin to become this person. This belief would become self-fulfilling.  

Likewise with our negative qualities. We have programmed ourselves without even realizing what we've been doing. We have hypnotized ourselves through repetition and selective memory into believing that this reduced version of ourselves is who we are. But you can change this. You can look within yourself for evidence of whatever positive qualities you desire. Examine your past with this in mind. Do not let the past reinforce your limitations; use it to reinforce what you wish to become. Be diligent about this. Use the selective process of your mind to your advantage.

2) Imprinting

What is 6 x 6? , 7 x 5? , 9 x 9? How is it that you know these answers instantly, quicker than you can punch the numbers into a calculator? It is because you have imprinted the multiplication tables into your consciousness. Think back to when you were in school. Think of how many times these tables were repeated, written out and practiced, until eventually they became imprinted into your consciousness. And now they are firmly imprinted. You need not practice them or refresh yourself - they are there for life.  

What you have done with the multiplication tables can also be done with new beliefs you wish to permanently imprint into your consciousness. The process is exactly the same, and the repetition equally important.  For five or ten minutes a day concentrate your attention as vividly as possible upon one simple statement. For example, if you wanted to imprint a belief about your subconscious that would help you to be successful you might use this one: "My subconscious mind is my partner in success." Having picked the statement you wish to use, begin to concentrate on it. Try to feel the statement in whatever way possible. Do not allow your mind to drift to other subjects. If it does, bring your attention back to your statement and refocus. Feel the power and implication of what you are saying. Let it become alive within you. Repeat it over and over, allowing your mind to absorb its message. If your mind insists on images, channel the images toward your declaration. Close yourself off to all other truths or realities, focusing solely upon the feeling and power of the statement.  

The repetition, whether verbal or mental, is important because it activates neurological patterns. Do not strain. Do not question or doubt. Enjoy the process. Feel its power. Let it energize you.  When the exercise is finished, do not dwell upon it, second guess yourself, wonder if its true. Put if from your mind until the next day, when you will repeat the process. Realize you are using the present as a moment of power to insert new beliefs that will naturally be materialized. It will happen automatically.  

You may want to experiment with the precise wording of your statement. Often it takes three or four revisions before the statement feels exactly right. Once you have it right then simply continue with it. You may experience spectacular results almost immediately. If you do, wonderful, but do not let this fool you into discontinuing the exercise. Often when people begin this process they do not realize how quickly results can be seen, and they become overexcited about the results achieved. In their excitement they forget to continue the exercise. If you want permanent results, you must fully imprint the new belief. A minimum of sixty to ninety days is necessary for a permanent imprint to take hold.

3) Action

The sooner you begin to act upon the new beliefs you are creating, the better. Otherwise you are not trusting and using the present. If you're struggling with financial prosperity and want to have more money and you're trying to establish a belief in abundance while still faced with your lack, then begin demonstrating abundance. In your outer reality take some symbolic action that shows you are changing. Maybe give some money (no matter how little) to charity. Indulge yourself somehow. A nice meal, a new article of clothing, a little gift to yourself.  

Or if you're lacking confidence, you would first repattern your past, searching and finding past examples of you being confident and you would focus daily on these. You would also imprint new empowering beliefs supporting your confidence, and then finally you act as if it were true. Bring action into the formula. No matter how small or inconsequential the action may seem, it is a huge step. It is a manifestation in outer reality.  Responding to your new beliefs in this way is sending a strong signal to your subconscious that new realities are beginning to take hold, that you are willing to change, that you are cooperating with the process, that it is in fact already happening.  

Remember, the initiative must come from you. Challenge yourself to find ways to demonstrate your changing reality the way you wish.

Very Good things. 

CB

@confluence
With thanks to the work and writing of John Keho