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February 26, 2006
12 to 88 and 5 to 9
I am often enough talking about the conscious and the subconscious mind and how the subconscious influences all of our life. From the decision to stop smoking, to failures related to weight losses and even such simple tasks as following through on your goals.
We have goals and the best intentions (okay, there are differences, but I bear with me until another entry). We strive hard to meet what we strive to do - just to fail - again, and again and again.
Why?
Because the subconscious mind is in control - it is the part of your brain that stirs most of our actions. Why is this so important? Are we often saying that we are doing things consciously? My client is often saying, let's decide consciously on this. But most of what we do is done subconsciously. This, my typing in this blog. I am not directing my fingers, each individually. I am not saying, dear Pinky, please click the "A" and then, dear thump, please click the spacebar. I just type. Subsonsciously, I know where the different letters on the keyboard are. I even know when I type a mistake, and then, consciously, go back to do the correction.
When I drive car, I am not telling my foot to press the accelerator to get started. The ringing of the phone reminds me that I have to answer it, but I do it ---- subconsciously. Picking it up, click the answer button, while I keep typing.
The brain is only able to hold 5-9 items at one time consciously. The rest is done unconsciously. Don't believe it?
Well, do this experiment (after you finish reading this, of course). Pick any point in a map somewhere in an area, vaguely known to you. In the beginning, when you leave the house, sit in the car, stir through the traffic and the jams, you will feel comfortable and just drive. Most of this, believe it or not (better do!) is done unconsciously. Until you come to the area where the familiarity stops. When it stops, you probably lower the volume of the radio, or tell your partner sitting in the car to be more quiet, you are concentrating. Yeah, that is the time when the conscious mind comes into play. You have to do something consciously, and suddenly, you need to stop something else in order to get things done.
I also give you the magic number - The conscious mind makes up 12% of our mind or brain function, while the other 88% is what we call the subconscious mind.
In fact, it is easily comparable to an iceberg, with the main structure located below.
(Picture from http://www.earthfuture.com/stormyweather/gallery/19%20-%20Iceberg%202.jpg)
The main function of the subsconscious mind is to keep you alive. Via breathing, to let your blood flow smoothly and so on. But it also stores memories, those memories that let you drive through the city on autopilot. It knows that it has learnt driving already (hard to believe in Malaysia, but that's the fact). It has learnt a lot more, throughout the years, from small onwards. And when it believes that it has to do something to make you feel secured and comfortable, it will do everything it can to boycott your actions - like smoking, like eating, like shopping, like procrastinating, like indecisiveness and so on.
And this frustrates you and your conscious mind in turn. And once again, you wonder why you didn't manage to reach your goals. Read more about this here.
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Posted by Andreas at February 26, 2006 04:59 PM
Comments
There was something in the newspapers today about making better decisions when you have less to think about (and after a night's sleep). I think this is somewhat related? :) Anyway, its getting more difficult these days with information overload.
Posted by: chasyss at February 26, 2006 10:03 PM