It depends on whose numbers you want to believe, but roughly 95% of our behavior happens without our conscious awareness of it. Your subconscious mind has filed away your early childhood memories, experiences, perceptions, insights, and things you were told when you were too young to know if they were true beliefs or just someone else’s beliefs. And it maintains them far beyond the memories contained in your conscious mind.
Limiting Beliefs
These past experiences, memories, and others’ beliefs have a tremendous impact on your current state of mind, habits, and general behavior. In fact, most of your life is being run by a small child whose age is probably less than eight and whose job it’s been to keep you safe from perceived threats!
Most of our current behavior, such as limiting beliefs, money problems, and difficult relationships were given to us at an early age, according to The Brain and Behavior Research Foundation which did a multi-decade study (beginning in 1993 and continuing through 2015), of 1420 people.
But, what was done, can also be undone, in the same way. Programming the subconscious mind can be a powerful tool for altering behavior, releasing what doesn’t serve you anymore, and successfully starting and continuing new habits.
Using the following simple strategies will help you program your subconscious to benefit your mind, body, and soul:
Affirmations. Everyone is familiar with affirmations. These are positive statements that you repeat to yourself each day. Affirmations can be powerful, but they must be used correctly.
Avoid affirmations that are clearly untrue. Your subconscious is flexible, but it’s not willing to seriously consider the ridiculous. Repeating, “I am a billionaire,” several times a day is too patently false to be accepted by your subconscious. “My financial situation is improving rapidly” or “My needs are being met each month so I now have money to put in savings each month,” are both statements your subconscious could accept.
Use Imagery and Emotions
One of the wonderful things about your subconscious is, that once it feels the emotions, sees pictures, and hears about something that you want to happen, it will be accepted as fact. This is because it cannot tell the difference between something that really happened and something you want to happen. So begin picturing yourself as thin, financially successful, or selling your first novel, provide visuals and generate the same emotion you would have in that situation, and they will happen. This is called “acting as if” and it works on the energetic level first, which then triggers it to happen in the physical world next.
The Right Way to Use Affirmations
Repeat your affirmations 3 sessions per day for 5-10 minutes each. Right before falling asleep, right after awakening, and at any opportune time during the day are the most ideal times. For example, if you want to strengthen your confidence, repeat the affirmations when you’re feeling self-doubt.
The Difference Between Fear and Excitement
Did you know that the same emotions you feel when you are afraid, are the exact emotions you feel when you are excited? There have been several studies done about this phenomenon, including one at Harvard University. So, any time you’re feeling self-doubt, fear, or any limiting belief, try saying to yourself three times, “I’m so excited I get to speak to a hundred people in 15 minutes from now! Or, “I’m so excited I’m going on this job interview, I’m going to rock it!” Or, “I’m so excited I am going to finally invest the money to get a coach who will really help me to get my book written!” And watch your physiology change!
The Birth of Subliminal Technology
The birth of subliminal advertising as we know it dates to 1957 when a market researcher named James Vicary inserted the words “Eat Popcorn” and “Drink Coca-Cola” onto a movie screen before and during a film. The words appeared for a single frame, allegedly long enough for the subconscious to pick up, but too short for the viewer to be aware of it, but they still felt suddenly hungry or thirsty and went to the snack bar to buy something. Subliminal messaging is so powerful, that its use in commercials, at ballgames, and in movie theaters, was outlawed in 1958. However, you can use them for good and help to transform your limiting beliefs, fears, and negative behaviors into something positive.
Using Subliminal Technology for Good
Today we have software available that flashes subliminal messages on your computer screen. These programs can run all day long without you being aware of them. You can use the affirmations included with the software or write your own.
There are also audio programs with positive messages embedded in the music that is beyond your ability to consciously recognize them. The difference between the early subliminal messages and today’s is quite simply that you are in control of it, and you’re not trying to make anyone else do anything without them knowing about it.
Hypnosis
You’ve been hypnotized many times. You probably just didn’t view it as hypnosis. When you’re totally engrossed in a book or movie, and you look up and you realize that an hour or more has passed… Or, you’re driving somewhere, and suddenly you realize that you don’t remember driving for the last 20 minutes or so – you’ve just experienced a form of hypnosis.
Hypnosis is just a state of intense concentration with reduced awareness of what is happening in your immediate environment. In this state, you’re more suggestible. In other words, it’s easier to influence you or convince you to change your mind.
There are many books, audio programs, and videos that utilize hypnotic techniques. Many people find these highly effective, while others are less impressed. Again, give it a try and determine if it’s worth your time. We promise you won’t cluck like a chicken or take your shoes and socks off to walk in a make-believe creek!
Meditation
Meditation is a proven way of focusing your concentration. Meditation creates a mental state that opens the mind to new ideas. It can be learned quite effectively from books and videos. It does require practice to become skilled, so this isn’t a quick fix.
Visualization
If you’re good at visualizing, you can convince your subconscious of nearly anything. A convincing visualization is viewed by your subconscious as an actual experience. For example, if you visualize yourself giving successful speeches, your subconscious will become convinced this is a skill you possess.
The reason this works is that the part of the brain that remembers our experiences can’t tell the difference between something that really happened, or something that you imagined. That’s why many scientists believe that our reality is nothing more than what we believe it is.
Again, the best time to use this process is right before falling asleep and upon awakening in the morning. Visualizing is easier and more effective at those times.
We are only aware of a tiny portion of what our brain is doing at any moment
Our brains are dealing with far too much information for our conscious mind to process. The brain is controlling body temperature, blood pressure, pulse, digestion, concentrations of various salts, neurotransmitters, hormones, and far more sensory data than we’re aware of.
The same is true for our behavior. In theory, the subconscious mind controls 95% of our behavior. It only makes sense to address this 95%. I’ve given you several ways to program or reprogram your subconscious mind. Pick one and see what you can accomplish!