What we believe about the way things work in the world determines the strategy we use to solve our problems or make changes to the status quo.
But beliefs aren’t based on the way things actually work in the world. And most of the beliefs we have are unconscious and not directly accessible. They’re hard to find even when we’re looking for them. Yet it’s these unconscious, difficult-to-access beliefs that drive every single aspect of our perception. And our perception is what we mistake for reality.
The majority of our beliefs are determined by our genetics, our experiences, and by other beliefs, which is why they’re called belief systems. Once formed, beliefs are notoriously difficult to modify.
As psychologist Richard Wiseman says, people have a remarkable ability to explain away evidence rather than change their cherished beliefs. (I would add that that’s because we don’t experience beliefs as beliefs but rather as facts.) When it comes to solving problems or changing the status quo, people often respond to their failed attempts not by questioning their beliefs or their strategies, but by blaming themselves and then either doubling down on their strategy or giving up altogether.
The fact is that we are living on a planet where virtually everyone believes their experience is an accurate reflection of reality. That isn’t the case now. It never was. It never will be. It can’t be. Brains process information for functionality, not accuracy. Therefore, our perception—and our experience—can’t be anything but an interpretation derived from the unconscious beliefs we have developed about the way the world works.
Furthermore, while many of us believe we want to change our behavior or our lives, what we are really aiming for is to feel less bad. Feeling less bad does not equate with feeling good. Quite the opposite. Given that the aim is to feel less bad, almost any action taken in that direction will do the trick. But once the aim has been achieved, we are no longer driven to keep taking that action. Taking action to feel less bad can’t and doesn’t lead to significant, sustained change. In fact, the outcome is much more likely to be a continuation of the status quo, i.e., the hamster wheel.
If you don’t like the direction your hamster wheel is headed in, there’s good news: you can change direction. Farther to Go! has been offering brain-based assistance in creating transformational (positive, intentional, significant and sustained) change since 2012.
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The ideas and processes I have been exposed to will be part of me and my psyche for the rest of my life. —A.S.
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