Self Awareness and Mind Power
Mind Power Secrets - Lesson Nine
What does self awareness have to do with mind power? Everything.
You need to know what is going on inside your own head if you
want to develop maximum mind power.
(Did you do the last assignment? Which thinking pattern
or behavior are you developing into a habit?)
Getting in Your Own Way
Ego: Have you ever watched a person cling to an idea
just because it was their idea? Have you been that person
at times? When you're attached to an idea, it's like it's a part
of you, and it hurts to let go. New ideas and evidence get ignored.
Ego can get in the way of mind power. Becoming aware of this
happening is the first step to resolving it.
Rationalization: You have enough brainpower to logically
support any belief you want to hold, right? Arguing for what
you want to be true can obviously corrupt your ability
to see the truth. Rationalizing corrupts useful reasoning. Watch
for this, and see how it takes you away from looking at all the
facts. Challenge your ideas when you see them being supported
by rationalization.
Other mind power blockers: Things are always going
on in your head, just below consciousness. Worries, fear, jealousies,
desires, pain, hope, and more. When too much is going on, you
feel stressed or uneasy. This gets in the way of clear thinking.
Take a deep breath now and then, and stop to see what's going
on in your mind. Then deal with it.
Mind Power through Self Awareness
Self awareness is an antidote to all of these mind power poisons.
Let your ego speak - as long as you're aware of it you can look
beyond it for answers. Rationalization is inevitable, but if
you see it happening, you can correct it. Awareness of subconscious
stressors lets you deal with them and clear your head. See yourself
clearly and you can play to your strengths while working on weaknesses.
The key is to get in the habit of self-observation. I'll have
some tips on that in a moment. Meanwhile, here are some questions
to ask as you observe yourself.
- Why do you want to hold onto an idea or belief? It may be
a great idea, but find hidden motivations, and you may find rationalization
instead of reason.
- Are you attached to an idea? If a better idea came along,
would you find it easy to let go?
- Are you resisting good ideas because they are coming from
others?
- Is your mind full of worry or fear?
- Are you putting too much confidence in an area where you
are weak?
- What are you feeling, and how might that affect your thinking?
- Are you arguing for the sake of arguing?
- Do you feel the need to explain more than the need to understand?
- What do you want from your mental activity, and how is that
affecting it?
Some Paths to Self Awareness
Self observation becomes easier with practice, and you can
start watching yourself right now. Like regular exercise or taking
vitamins, it's an activity that isn't difficult in itself. It
just isn't a habit yet. Try some of the following to get started:
- Mindfulness exercises. These put you "in the moment,"
so you are aware of what's going on inside and outside of yourself.
For a full description of these exercises, read Relax
And Think Clearly.
- Let yourself rationalize. Consciously engaging in bad habits
is a great way to learn about them. Hear yourself explaining
why you made a decision that you know is bad. You'll see the
process, and be able to identify it more quickly the next time
it happens.
- Listen to an idea that a friend has. Then explain it to
somebody else. Notice how much more interesting the idea seems
when you explain it. Watching this ego-identification process
will make you more aware of it in the future.
- Buy my book: Beyond
Mental Slavery
(You can read excerpts here Beyond
Mental Slavery .com)
Assignment: Start developing self awareness by observing
yourself. Write down several incidents where you caught yourself
rationalizing, or discovered subconscious motivators.
Next Lesson: Total mind control - putting
it all together.
P.S. If you haven't subscribed to this
e-course, and you want to learn the other secrets of mind power,
you can go here to subscribe: Mind
Power Secrets
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