What Happens When I Forget Who’s in Charge
My brain does things I didn’t expect.
I have a very modest understanding of how computer programs work. A few things I know for sure:
When I hit the “delete” key, something will get deleted.
The “save” button will save something.
If I type a code for a word to appear green, it will do so.
This is basic stuff. If I give the correct instructions, I will usually get what I’ve asked for.
I Can Also Tell My Body What To Do.
If I say, “Pick this up,” “Brush your teeth,” or “Take out the trash,” my body will usually respond (although I may hear an occasional “I don’t want to.”).
Why, when I expect my computer and my body to obey my commands, am I surprised when my mind does the same?
No, the Mind is Not a Computer, However . . .
I may say, “I’ll never get this right” or “I’ll never be able to learn this.” I may mentally groan in anticipation of an onerous task that faces me.
Then I don’t get it right, and I never learn this, and the task is just as onerous as I’d anticipated.
This doesn’t mean I’m omniscient. It means that my mind has followed my instructions as surely as a computer program deletes the word I’ve marked.
But I’m surprised. And there’s a reason.
Often These Messages Are Very Quiet.
I mean quiet as in subconscious. They are parts of programs that run silently in the background. I acquired many of them during the first seven years of my life.
The idea that we uncritically absorb all sorts of beliefs that may do us harm later on has gotten more popular recently, but it’s not new.
The following quote is attributed to Saint Ignatius of Loyola, who founded the Jesuit order in 1534.
Give me the child for the first seven years and I will give you the man.
The Jesuits understood the human mind, and they were very successful in establishing a global educational and missionary influence.
What they did intentionally, our parents did accidentally. If they said, “You’ll never get that right,” they didn’t mean to stifle our growth. They didn’t understand that a three- or four-year old doesn’t have a brain designed to logically analyze the correctness of a statement. The child hears it as an instruction. “Don’t get it right.” And he or she doesn’t.
One Way to Deprogram
Many methods exist for this. I highly recommend the work of Bruce Lipton, Ph.D., a cell biologist who has done much pioneering work in this area. On his web site in the Resources area, you’ll find a lot of valuable information. Scroll down to Belief Change and Energy Psychology Modalities.
My starter suggestion is this:
Pay attention to your thoughts.
This is too hard.
I was never good at math, anyway.
There’s no such thing as true love.
Sometimes they run together very quickly. Oh, look, there’s a mistake, you’re so stupid, why can’t you do that right, will you ever learn?
I do my best to catch them. I interrupt them. I try very hard not to make the mistake of thinking, “Oh, they’re like ants or locusts. They teem in their millions. I’ll never get them all.” That, too, is a limiting belief.
I don’t have to get them all. No matter how many of them seem to be racing around, they work in teams. When I get the most active ones, I crack the code.
I do one more thing: I thank them. They’ve crawled out of the depths of the unconscious and made themselves known. They come bearing clues to those limiting programs. I encourage their friends to join them. I tell them that their energy can be put into more positive activities.
And I also remind myself that my unconscious mind is not my enemy. It helps me to walk without having to relearn how every day. It helps me to drive, to exercise, to do countless habitual acts.
So I thank it for its many services and make it my responsibility to delete the programs that no longer serve me.
I remind myself that it all begins with listening.
