The Power of the Conscious and Subconscious Mind: Language, Programming and Mindset Matters

I’ve always been interested in learning about the power of the human mind. I have read Psycho-Cybernetics and Neuro Linguistic Programming since I was a young teen. The idea is that your brain is like software and you can program your brain to do things & to act in a certain way. As Henry Ford was reported to have said: “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t — you’re right.” If you study the most accomplished individuals in whatever field, Mindset and attitude really does matter. Vision boards and mantras really do work.

But one of the problems of growing up in Canada and in an academic household, was a very high level of skepticism & cynicism. I always half believed these and that was the problem. It doesn’t work when you half believe something. Or more dangerously, you are programming yourself but without much deliberate thought.

This is kind of what happened to me. When I think about the things I’ve always wanted, I actually end up getting them in the end. 3 very simple things.

1) Being able to buy whatever book I want, whenever I want, regardless of price. This is also how i ended up as a crazy Tsundoku: ie. Japanese word for person who has more books than they can read.

2) Traveling around the world for my life and career

3) Being able to afford and eat anything I want without looking at the price on the menu.

3 very simple and frankly somewhat petty things that bring me incredible joy. Yet I got this point subconsciously & really only figured this out through my sessions with a therapist. I certainly do wonder if I had been a bit more thoughtful & deliberate when I was younger I might have had bigger, more ambitious and impactful goals.

Don’t get me wrong. I am immensely grateful to be where I am but there is a lesson for all of us. The mind is going to be programmed one way or the other. Might as well aim high & be thoughtful about it. This programming is from the content you consume (aka your media diet), the people you end up spending most of your time with and the self talk you have.

For the record, you can’t just imagine and picture yourself to success or whatever it is that you want. You have to put a lot of mental and physical work behind it as well.

But the hard work without some bigger vision is like going hiking in the woods without a GPS or Map. You end up getting lost or end up somewhere else far away from where you planned. I personally think this is why so many people end up having midlife crises in our society. They come to the realization that the life they lived was not the one they truly wanted.