WRITTEN by PICK THE BRAIN
Belief
is a funny thing. I used to think that it was entirely objective. The mind
receives information, processes it, and creates the appropriate belief. There
is no room for choice — your beliefs depend entirely on the information you’ve
absorbed. If this were true, it would be ridiculous to judge someone for their
beliefs. After all, they have no choice in the matter!
While I still believe that people shouldn’t be judged
for beliefs, time and reflection have reversed my opinion on the matter of
choice — all belief is rooted in choice. But why? How can something as
important as belief be subject entirely to whim?
The
reason is uncertainty. Every piece of knowledge has inherent uncertainty. Our
tools for measuring and interpreting information are inaccurate. Although some
areas (like science) provide a high degree of certainty, others (such as
morals) provide virtually none. Even the most established facts could be (and
often are) proved false by new discoveries.
Unlike
knowledge, beliefs don’t have the luxury of uncertainty. You either believe
something or you don’t. In order to go from uncertain knowledge to certain
belief, the mind has to fill in the gaps. It has to look for additional
information and draw conclusions. This is where choice is used to develop and
reinforce belief. As soon as you choose to believe something, your mind goes to
work gathering information that supports your rationale.
This
is why positive beliefs are so important. It’s impossible to know for certain
if your efforts will be met with failure or success. No matter how confident
you are, it’s possible that outside forces will ruin your plans. You make a
conscious decision to believe you will succeed or that you will fail. You can
always rationalize either belief.
Consider
the example of this site. If I choose to believe that catchitwith.blogspot.com will
fail, I can instantly drum up a list of facts to support that belief:
§ Other sites have grown more quickly
§ I started blogging 2 years too late
§ I lack formal training and experience as a writer
§ Many people aren’t interested in intellectual topics
§ Blog traffic doesn’t monetize well
On the
other hand, if I choose to believe that catchitwith.blogspot.com will succeed, I can
create an equally compelling list.
§ The site has several thousand subscribers
§ Visitors have responded positively to the content
§ Numerous articles have become popular with social
media
§ Traffic has grown continuously
§ Blogging is gradually becoming mainstream
Every item on both lists is true, but my belief
determines which set of facts I focus on. When I lose confidence and dwell on
failure, I come up with even more facts to add to the failure list,
strengthening the failure belief. When I choose to believe in success, positive
facts emerge. The belief you choose to accept will become stronger over time
through this pattern of self reinforcement.
Believe You Will Succeed
Although positive belief doesn’t guarantee success, I doubt that success is possible without it. Not because of the belief itself, but because of the chain of thoughts and actions triggered by a positive belief. When you believe you can succeed, your mind overcomes obstacles. You solve problems creatively and are eager to take action.
Believe You Will Succeed
Although positive belief doesn’t guarantee success, I doubt that success is possible without it. Not because of the belief itself, but because of the chain of thoughts and actions triggered by a positive belief. When you believe you can succeed, your mind overcomes obstacles. You solve problems creatively and are eager to take action.
How do
you control your beliefs? The key is realizing that it’s possible. You don’t
have to a slave to every thought that pops into your head. If you want to
believe you can succeed, just start doing it. When negative thoughts enter your
mind, recognize them for what they are and discard them. Don’t be oblivious to
negative feedback. Rather, use it constructively and refuse to let it dominate
you. Consciously remind yourself of the positive and allow the negative to roll
off your back.
There
really isn’t a downside to believing in yourself and believing the best about
others. You may not achieve your original goal and might get burned, but you’ll
be better off than if you’d assumed the worst from the start. Believing you
will succeed will also make you happier. Although it may be partly delusion,
the same is true of the failure belief. You have to believe in something, why
not believe that your hard work is contributing to something positive? Why not
believe that your biggest dreams are possible?
It may
be idealistic but it’s preferable to cynicism.
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