Are Your Thoughts Really Yours?
Integrating Conscious Awareness into Daily Life
What if I told you that your thoughts have been engineered? Man-made. Fake.
They were passed onto you through Instagram, TV or a podcast, graciously infused into your brain and purported to be yours.
But whose are they?
Our brains are constantly being flooded with ideas and information that are the children of external forces — the media being a grand culprit.
The case of Andrew Tate is an example of how quickly a radical idea can proliferate and sway public opinion, particularly in vulnerable populations.
What is the Subconscious Mind?
Our subconscious mind is continually gathering and storing information. While a new activity such as weight training takes a high level of presence when we’re starting off, muscle memory develops over time which removes the need for conscious awareness. This is where our subconscious or passive mind enters the equation.
Due to the breadth of information processing that occurs on a regular basis, our subconscious mind stores what it prioritizes to be of lesser importance in the present moment.
The subconscious mind is helpful in that it allows you to perform multiple tasks at once without extreme focus on one activity. It allows us to kill two birds with one stone. Who doesn’t want to live in a more productive landscape?
There’s a catch though. Your subconscious is responsible for a whopping 90% of your brain's processing power.
Imagine the amount of information you take in every day without being aware. This then influences how you think, feel and behave.
Subliminal Messaging in Pop Culture
Have you ever dreamt or thought of something that seems completely absurd and out of character?
These are intrusive thoughts which are common and can be influenced by the gory Netflix show you watched yesterday. I have certainly had them, hence why I never watch scary or sinister movies.
You is a mainstream TV show that has captured a wide audience due to the protagonist’s charm and attractiveness. The show is predicated on a male who stalks women and kills those who pose a roadblock to his love affairs.
The problem with You is that it is feeding the subconscious brain with gruesome images and normalizing violence in the context of a sexy “I’d kill for you” love which is toxic.
According to Dr. Martin Seif, a Ph.D. specializing in anxiety disorders, “A lot of the time–maybe even most of the time–people start getting intrusive thoughts in reaction to something they read or hear about, or see on the news, or in a movie or TV drama.”
Many of us wonder why we feel sad or angry but cannot muster an explanation. Yet, the answer could be at our fingertips! What content are you consuming?
When we fail to be selective about what information enters our subconscious brain, we entertain emotions and thoughts that were never ours, to begin with.
Psychology and Marketing
Psychology and marketing are best buds. Heck! They made a movie about it.
What Woman Want is a 2-hour Hollywood film about a chauvinistic man who uses telepathy to defeat his female boss through an advertising campaign tailored to women. If he can find a way to impact women’s emotions, game over!
Sadly, the average marketer doesn’t display superpowers like Nick Marshall (Mel Gibson). What they do have in common with Nick is their use of emotional manipulation. They analyze data about the psychology of their demographic and adapt their marketing strategy accordingly.
Why do you think Instagram is so addictive? The algorithm was manufactured that way to ensure people return for another dopamine rush. It doesn’t even need to be marketed anymore because people remember how the app made them feel.
Don’t let this strategy discredit the positive contributions companies have made to society. Just be aware of where your attention is directed. Corporations are continually vying to be front and centre in your mind — and on your monthly bank statement.
The Antidote to Living Mechanically
There is no one which path to achieve conscious awareness in your daily life. With that being said, there are ways that you can move toward living more consciously including:
- Daily meditation. This can be a 5-minute guided session to start before increasing the time.
- Journaling without any outer distraction. E.g., you can do thirty days of gratitude and choose a different thing to be grateful for each day.
- Practicing presence when washing the dishes, doing the laundry or other monotonous everyday tasks.
- Carefully selecting what type of content to consume on the Internet, TV or phone. Limiting your time is also helpful.
- Pause before accepting an idea and challenge yourself to critically think. What does this mean? Where did the information come from? How would this be possible? Why would such and such happen?
Although you may have lost control of the wheel, you can usher the ship in the right direction. Its destiny is in your hands.
How do you practice being present? Let me know in the comments. Thanks for reading!
