The subconscious mind can be viewed as a vast, sprawling memory bank tucked neatly within the recesses of your cranium. It's a tireless scribe, constantly absorbing, cataloging, and archiving the barrage of environmental stimuli and internal experiences that you encounter each day. Astonishingly, this subconscious repository has almost no constraints when it comes to its capacity to store data.
This suggests that the predominant role of your subconscious mind is twofold: it functions to both store and recall information. This dynamic is key in ensuring your responses to the world around you are grounded in the mental and emotional programming etched into your subconscious over the years.
The guiding framework of your subconscious mind is your self-concept - the 'master program' that dictates how you perceive yourself, how you interpret your experiences, and how you react. It's your subconscious mind's job to keep your thoughts, words, and actions in sync with this self-concept. However, it is possible to remodel this 'master program' with persistent repetition of positive affirmations, the act of embedding constructive, success-oriented ideas into your subconscious, thereby reshaping your cognitive patterns.
Yet, it's worth noting that this process is rather subjective, as your subconscious mind doesn’t engage in independent reasoning. Instead, it faithfully carries out the commands of your conscious mind.
1. The Massive Influence of Your Subconscious Mind
Studies in neuroscience have unveiled that a significant majority of our actions, decisions, and emotions are orchestrated by our subconscious. It's estimated that 95% (and in some cases up to 99%) of your life is orchestrated by the programming embedded within your subconscious mind. This revelation demonstrates just how much influence this part of our mind has on our day-to-day existence.
2. The Ever-Vigilant Subconscious
Unfailingly vigilant, your subconscious mind operates around the clock, managing all vital bodily processes and functions. Even when you sleep and your conscious mind takes a backseat, your subconscious remains fully alert. Scientific research has proven that even during slumber, our subconscious mind continues to register and process all sensory inputs, all while our conscious mind recharges.
3. Habits and the Subconscious Mind
As we navigate the routines of our day-to-day life, we generate automatic habits. These habits, from the way we tie our shoelaces to how we navigate our commute, emerge because our subconscious mind processes information swiftly, bypassing our conscious awareness. This is a testament to the unconscious mind's prowess. Much like how plants instinctively adapt and respond to their environment, your subconscious mind is the unseen force guiding you through your daily routines without a second thought.
4. Literal Interpretation by the Subconscious Mind
One quirk of the subconscious mind is its lack of interpretive finesse - it takes everything literally. This means it doesn't differentiate between negative and positive self-talk. For instance, if you repeatedly tell yourself, "I can't do this," your subconscious mind registers this as fact and acts accordingly. This principle echoes Henry Ford's famous sentiment, "if you think you can, or if you think you can’t, you’re right!". This underlines the profound importance of careful self-talk - your subconscious mind is always listening.
5. Living in the Present with the Subconscious Mind
While your conscious mind roams freely through the corridors of past memories and future aspirations, your subconscious mind stays firmly anchored in the present. It remains consistently tuned into what is happening right now and how these events are impacting your body. This characteristic explains the growing popularity of mindfulness practices; they guide us to maintain a strong connection with the present moment, thereby positively influencing our central nervous system (CNS). Harnessing the present-focus of the subconscious mind through such practices can pave the way to improved mental and physical wellbeing.
