Spare Thoughts

servo mechanisms, messaging, and self-image

2010-08-23T02:36:00.000-07:00

When it comes to self-image, Dr Maxwell Maltz is considered to be a luminary in this area of psychology. Actually he was a platic surgeon and he wrote a landmark book called Psychocybernetics (1960) which documented many of his observations and conclusions from working with his patients.He concluded that the human mind could be likened to a "servo mechanism" that could be programmed with predictable effect. More specifically, he opined that messaging determined what a person believed and that a person would act out to bring those beliefs to fruition.Recently I posted a the following status update. It was basically a brain dump of a cognition that occurred to me while I was driving home one day...

"Authority, Repetition, Intensity. These are the 3 things that empower messages to formulate beliefs in our psyche - which propel our actions and precipitate the corresponding results in our lives. If you want to eliminate limiting beliefs, 1). Question Authority, 2) Notice Repetition, 3) Evaluate high-Intensity messaging with lucid rationality"

What had been on my mind when I wrote this was actually how people are manipulated by mass media and I was trying to think of an antidote.Fortunately one of my friends, in a very diplomatic and indirect way, pointed out to me that my statement was of no use to him and it occurred to me that I hadn't had a decent frame of reference in the quote to make it at all meaningful. So I decided to expand on it with this short essay.Initially I thought I would respond with a useful link to a page which neatly summarized those of Dr Maltz's theories which were relevant to what I was attempting to say. What I found was a lot of references to marketing doctrine. These authors were of course advocating the application of Dr Maltz's findings to the field of marketing. In this context, marketing is then basically an exercise in coercing a target [person] into a particular belief. Usually this is a belief associated with inadequacy. The kind of inadequacy that can only be satiated with the purchase of the marketer's product. On a higher level, you can see this as a perverse attempt at coercing people to participate more fully with a corrupted monetary system that has grown to despise them. Fotunately there are those in the self-help industry who use Dr Malz's findings to help people become aware of how they function on this level, with a view to empowering them with more choices and thereby having more freedom in the determination of their own personal destiny. This knowledge allows people to think critically about incoming messaging and it allows them to apply their imagination to creating the messaging they need to create the results that they want in their lives. I highly recommend a modern edition of the book Psychosybernetics which has stood the test of time.

Where I find this knowledge most applicable in a political sense is for people to wake up from the cultural and social coma that the vast majority of western populations are under. If people can understand their servo mechanism in the most basic way, they would logically use this knowledge to evaluate incoming messages in a whole new light. This, in turn, would lead to critical thinking and a whole lot more people saying:

"wait a minute... what's wrong with this picture???"

Of course that status update statement needn't be applied in a political sense. It applies generally in a personal sense and could form the basis for a range of self-determined responses to the experience of the individual. A lot of the time, messaging comes from ourselves. We often take on board messages at a young age and repeat them to ourselves (consciously or sub-consciously) well into adulthood. We give these messages power by conferring authority to them, repeating them to ourselves, associating them with intense experiences. Harmful messages create beliefs which impose needless self-limitation. These limiting beliefs are at the cause of immense dysfunction and subsequent suffering. Tracking down limiting beliefs is not always easy and can be a lifetime pursuit. Being analytical about messaging we give ourselves and messaging we receive from our environment and personal experience gives an individual a huge advantage in tracking down and eliminating limiting beliefs. But it also bolsters our cognitive immune system which raises alarm when someone is attempting to subvert our intellectual defenses. We live in a time when we need this immunity more than ever and it starts with some basic knowledge of how our minds process and are affected by [potentially coercive] messaging.Those three steps that I mentioned in my status update are my personal suggestions on how a person can develop and enhance their critical thinking. Obviously they correlate directly with Dr Malz's theories about the power of messaging. Naturally this can be a deep and complicated subject, but it needn't be. If you find it interesting, I highly recommend the book.I hope this constitutes a useful message.

Yesterday holds tomorrow hostage

2007-08-16T05:51:00.000-07:00

As a continuation from my previous article about "stealing the future", this brief one discusses another way in which a future may be stolen.

"Between stimulous and response, there is a space. In that space lies our freedom and power to choose our response. In those choices lie our growth and our happiness." - AUTHOR UNKNOWN (please contact me if you know).

Think about that for a minute. This means that we are not merely the product of nature and nurture. We are not limited to a situation precipitated from nature and nurture. If we buy into the idea that we are, then we lock our paradigm into a fixed trajectory and we loose the power to affect our own future.

To break free from this, we need a pradigm shift - a change in our outlook that is deeply internal. In order to do this, we need to take responsibility for our choices thus far (recognise that they ARE choices), and then be proactive about designing goals and making better choices.

If we don't take responsibility, and we say that we are in our current situation because of external factors, then we are a slave to the nature/nurture trajectory and the trend for yesterday will project what will happen tomorrow.

Stealing the future

2007-06-04T21:52:00.001-07:00

currumbin surfer, originally uploaded by Spasmoid.

Today's self-help books are all about "reaching your potential". Sometimes we are our own worst enemies. Every time we make an excuse to ourselves about how we can't achieve something, or why we can't do something we'd like to do, we are stealing.

We steal from ourselves because those thaughts rob ourselves of that opportunity. We do it all the time. Sometimes we allow others to do it too. Whether it is said directly, or suggested subtly, people can steal our future by placing ideas in our minds that something is not obtainable. Having said that, I wouldn't necesarily accuse that person of theft, because it is their condition which leads them to unconscously deny themselves and others opportunity.

The main thing is that we all watch our own tendencies for this limited way of thinking to steal from us and from others. This requires us to be proactive.

My advice is to keep your horizens broad, and help others to broaden their own.

Are there any potential dangers? What are they?

Sometimes putting too many "options" on the table can be too chaotic and can result in lack of commitment. The trick is putting first things first. One way to do this is to make your own personal mission statement. Think about what is most important to you, and put those things first. Then secure your goals from theft.

The best way to achieve security is to be clear in your own mind about your priorities and your mission. The next time your future is challenged, you will recognise the threat so that you'll be in a position to override it with decisive action - gently, but with authority.

Human Nature - part II

2007-06-04T11:24:00.000-07:00

I just came back from a walk down my local beach at Currumbin, Australia. After finishing three quarters of a pizza, I was standing knee-deep in the waves on the sandbar, looking out to sea, whining and complaining to God about my problems.

I was interrupted by someone who was soon to be a friend for life. Clutching two beer bottles, he beckoned my attention from the water's edge - searching my face in the moonlight. "How ya goin' mate?" - a fine question to be asking under the circumstances. "I'm good. How 'bout yourself?" etc etc. Turns out that Glen had a lot on his mind. We talked about the meaning of life and briefly touched on religion. He told me about his tarot card readings and how everything was coming true "even tonight was predicted". Apparently this was supposed to be his last visit to the beach or anywhere for that matter.

I told Glen that you can't live your life by "snippets" or truisms, and that fortune tellers are only as accurate as we make them. He told me not to try and "convert him". I told him that I knew better than to try.

How pig headed do we have to be to believe in the supernatural, but not God (and what He's done for us)? Glen was prepared to die for his beliefs in some two-bit hack of a "fortune" teller (who was no doubt being encouraged by the Devil) rather than be converted.

I think we fear change. But in this life, it's "change or die" - even the evolutionists can agree with that. The devil's name means "The Accuser of the Bretheran". It's simple. He wants you dead.

The accusations are designed to put distance between you and God. He wants you to think you are so bad, that even God can't forgive you and that you cannot change. He wants you to think that your are incapable of leading a Christian life. He doesn't want you to know that God accepts you as you are - warts and all. So he accuses you.

Glen had a different look on his face as he left to go home to his wife and kids. The watch tower was definitely doing it's job tonight and another tarot reading was proven to be a lie.

Human nature

2007-06-03T07:08:00.000-07:00

I just came back from a walk down my local beach at Currumbin, Australia. There is a section of the beach that faces the river-mouth. There is a big huge red sign that says "it is dangerous to swim here. don't do it". About 10 metres away is a life-guard watch-tower and during peak season, jet boats patrol the river-mouth.

Why?

Because humans are idiots. They cannot be told. They always know better. So why then doesn't the surf life saving club abandon that part of the beach? Because they are in the business of saving lives. It is a given that people are stupid and will do stupid things, so they place the saving of lives above all other priorities. Even if none of the surf life-savers are Christians, they are behaving in accordance with God's law. It is an act of grace to put the watch tower there in just the same way Christians believe that Jesus came down in the flesh to live a perfect life so that He would be justified to save us from the consequences of our own actions.

God's law is that we strive to do as He did. We are to forgive, and love one another. Hist forgiveness and his promise of salvation doesn't mean that the laws of the universe automagically vanish and do not apply. The laws of cause and effect are still there which is why we need His lifeline. If I go swimming in the river mouth, get swept out to sea by a strong current because I ignored the sign and was too proud to raise my hand and scream for help (resistance to personal change), I can't blame the life-savers for not saving me. Yet somehow people still blame God for the consequences of our built-in sinful nature. God can only help us if we put up our hand and yell for help - thereby admitting that we were stupid enough to ignore the sign. [Habbit 1 of the 7 habbits is taking responsibility]

It's in our nature to be too proud to raise our hand and scream for help. Yet we have been given a gift that no other species has. We have been given the gift of free will. We can simply DECIDE to transcend our pride, our imperfect nature. We can DECIDE to get a free ride. But we have to give up our illusions and give up control. It seems paradoxical to us that giving up control is what's necessary to experience freedom.

It goes against OUR nature.

The source of love

2007-04-22T16:12:00.000-07:00

I heard an interesting sermon at the wedding service of my cousin. The sermon was delivered by his father. He said that

"modern psychologists are powerless to help couples save their relationships - because they leave God out of the picture. Since God is the source of love."

This can be explained in part by an interview (download the MP3 here 4min5sec in) with Bono (from a band called U2), Bono says

"...Then enters the story of grace. which really is the story of Christ which turned this view of the universe upside-down. It's completely counter-intuitive and very very hard for human beings to grasp grace. We can actually grasp atonement, revenge, fairness - all of this we can grasp. But we don't grasp grace very well. I'm much more interested in grace because I'm really depending on it."

It's the only way to weather the inevitable storms...

Love and Power

2006-12-22T06:16:00.000-08:00

I spent quite a while in the "self help" section of a large bookstore today. It was interesting to see what was available for relationships. Judging by the frequency of certain topics, one could be forgiven for thinking that relationship dysfunction is as prevalent as any other modern disease. Without meaning to sound too much like a grumpy old man - "it's no wonder". With some of the ordinary (yet politically correct) advice on offer, it's no wonder people don't know about love relationships.

There's lots of acknowledgment that in order to be happy, we need to relate - that's how we're wired. Unfortunately, a lot of books have a "what's in it for me" approach. For instance, some focus on "how to pick the good'uns" (people, that is) and how to avoid the "duds" so that you can "get" the "most" out of your relationship (win/lose). One book claimed to know what women wanted, and what men wanted so the made two lists on the back. Apparently, men want sex and women want power.

Another book quite rightly claimed that the one with the most power in the relationship cares the least for the relationship. I happen to agree with that. Thank goodness not all books would lead you up the garden path.
I would put it to you that having a power monger in a relationship would necessarily turn that relationship into one of slavery - not one of mutual love. I don't think that statement requires explanation. When you love someone, you are keen to synergise with them and you think nothing of giving up control over them to do so. In fact, you do so gladly because you want to be of service to them. Ooooh, bet there are some out there that have alarm bells ringing from that politically incorrect statement. "what!? I'll be no one's servant, I am my own person!" I hear you say emphatically - "no one is the boss of me". Quite right, if you want to be an island - which by prior definition implies inevitable un-happiness.

Love is a verb. It is something you do. It is something you volunteer. It is something you get enthustiastic about volunteering. It is an inter-dependency (not a counter-dependency) that you choose. It is the opposite of power. Love (for one another) and (the desire for) power (over one another) are diametrically opposed to each other. So if you are in a relationship with someone, you need to choose which one it is that you want - love, or power.

You have the power to choose.

Nothing for the swim home

2006-12-14T09:01:00.000-08:00

If it's worth earning, it's worth protecting
Around the time the latest American war in Iraq started, there was a lot of talk about how the allies were gonna give the Iraqis democracy. I remember seeing an American intellectual being interviewed saying something along the lines of "The Iraqis aren't ready for democracy. They haven't had to fight and bleed to earn it..." - hardly a politically correct theory.
However I have to say, I happen to think there's a good amount of truth to it, for two reasons. 1) A contrived democracy doesn't have the durability to withstand the rigors of the real problems faced by it's constituents. 2) It's constituents haven't had the necessary paradigm shift in their collective consciousness to appreciate what a home-grown democracy costs and to put aside those who would threaten it in the name of lesser problems.
For the sake of this discussion, I would like to cast a husband/wife relationship into the same pattern. How do you know it's real if you have never had to work, or suffer to preserve it. It's kinda like knowing you're alive because you can feel pain. If your love is bought with well tested conviction, would you not set aside your problems or misgivings that may threaten it?

How much can you take?
But how much can your commitment take? At what point will you be pushed too far?
The is a line in one of my favorite movies which I believe is excellent inspiration to anyone asking themselves this question. It's from the film Gataca, where two brothers used to compete against each other to see who could swim the furtherest out to sea. Whoever turned back first was the looser. For most of their young lives, the older brother would always win. Then the younger brother started to win. Anyway, the dialog from the older brother to the younger brother goes something like this...
"How come I used to beat you all the time and now you beat me?"
The younger brother replies...
"It's simple. I left nothing for the swim home."
Basically what he did was give up his security. This society is obsessed with self preservation. Marriage partners a not competing against each other (even if they think they are), but against the things that would threaten their marriage: against the tyrany of distance between their points of view, against outside influcences and circumstance that would conspire against them, against their own weaknesses. Often times, what's called for is the giving up of things that used to bring us personal security in favor of embracing things that give the relationship security - then we can get our security from the relationship. But all too often we choose not to be confident in the relationship and we refuse to commit, preferring instead to hang on to things (habits etc) which have always made us comfortable. Thereby expressing less confidence in the relationship and degrading it in a way which will attract less of your confidence. It's a downward spiral.

Statistics say your marriage is more likely to fail than succeed. The odds are against your marriage and the dream that it was meant to fulfill. If you want to beat the odds, both of you have to be willing to leave nothing for the swim home.

About this blog

2006-12-05T07:33:00.000-08:00

Recently I watched a documentary about a guy roughly my age who woke up one day on a subway train with complete retrograde amnesia. He could not remember a single detail of his life up to that point. It was a dramatic story, but the thing that struck me most is his appraisal everything about life through the eyes of a born again person. It was like being a child but with the benefits of being a discerning adult capable of complex reasoning.

Often one gets so caught up in life that we often don't see the forest for the trees. Every now and then some of us come up out of the forest canopy for air and take a look around. I think it is important to consciously do this from time to time. This blog is to get me to think out loud. You have to put a bit more effort into organising your thoughts if you're going to share them in public. A lot of people write for their own benefit and they hope that somehow, curious onlookers may benefit too. Myself and this blog and no different.

I hope you find this blog interesting enough to return visit from time to time.

Regards,
Terence.