"Positive thinking": Why is it a hit and miss experience?
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There's a lot of spiritual and new-age material on the power of "positive thinking". Many will swear that it works, some will even say that it is life-changing for them. Others will say it's new-age mumbo jumbo that doesn't do much.
So... what's the truth? Does it work or is it a failure?
How can there be such a difference of opinion?
The short answer is that it depends on the individual. It's like quantum phenomena that are dependent on the observer.
The longer and more complicated answer is that what we experience seems to be happening at 2 layers. The first is our mind. The second layer is our ability to affect reality - or better stated "choose" a reality.
Layer 1: The mind
Let's start with an example: If one believes they are lucky, their subconscious will be leading them to choices that are aligned with this belief. If one believes they are unlucky, their subconscious will be bringing them "misfortune".
Positive thinking, as a solution to one's problems, is usually suggested when someone is already in a problematic frame of mind where the world seems a darker place. "Think positive and maybe things will change" - we hear. This is similar to being "hopeful".
Both "hoping" and "thinking in a positive way" (just in case things change), represent subconscious admissions that the bad outcome is what we are really expecting. Thus our primary belief is one of a bad outcome - and not a positive one.
Positive thinking is not about wishing away the bad outcome all the while sublimely fearing it will happen.
The mistake people make is confusing what they want, with what they really believe. The subconscious is led by what we believe, not by what we want.
Layer 2: The mechanics of shaping reality
This reality is very malleable and personalized based on our expectations. The interaction of the "observer" with "reality" is like a room of mirrors. It reflects the projections of those walking inside it. The mirror mechanism works by us "tapping" one timeline, out of an infinite number of parallel timelines, where what we've "chosen" through our beliefs, is reflected back at us as the most matching reality.
Our "projections", in this case, are our sublime / subconscious expectations of what will happen. These are not to be confused with what we consciously state that we want.
Now, if we are in a situation and we expect something positive, then it is more likely that we'll get a positive outcome.
Someone might ask at this point: "Why do you say likely? Why doesn't it ALWAYS work?"
The answer to that introduces further layers of complexity: Apparently we also have "blanket beliefs" and "blanket expectations" on how the world operates.
A blanket belief could be that "God dictates things", "Fate dictates things", "Randomness dictates things", "Causality determines things", etc etc.
In the cases where people believe in a more random universe, or in cases where they allow the possibility of external sources of "intervention" (like "God", "saints", "higher self", etc etc) - these will tend to mix with other beliefs, thus creating multiple simultaneous expectations that may conflict between them.
It's like "I think this will happen, but hey, life is full of random events - anything can happen". So at that point, the expectation of randomness, introduces such.
Or another could say "I believe I'm headed for a negative outcome but I have faith in God because he has saved me so many times in the past". That would also introduce "uncertainty" due to the multiple conflicting expectations.
In the end the belief that one believes most, will win. Reality creation mechanics are like Newtonian physics, in a sense:
A helicopter may weigh 2 tons and need 2+ tons of lift to start hovering above the ground. So you have competing forces (+2 tons of weight / -2 tons of lift). The moment the lift is more than the weight = you get an increase in elevation The moment the lift drops to a level below the weight = you start losing altitude.
The sum of beliefs determine the outcome
So the real question that will answer whether the result will be positive or negative, is:"what do I really believe will happen in the end". If one can't answer that, then they can ask "what is the sum total of all the conflicting beliefs I hold?"
Finding all the conflicting beliefs will require increased awareness, because some of these are taken for granted - like one's world view on things like "randomness", "divine intervention", "causality", "luck" etc.
Other beliefs are subconsciously implied by how we envision our future.
If, for example, the way we see ourselves in a week, a month, a year, five years, is more-or-less similar to what we have right now, that's an implied belief that things won't be changing much to any positive or negative direction.
Interestingly, some times a psychologist will ask the patient "where do you see yourself in 2-3-5 years". The answer to that question is very revealing of one's belief system and it can create an outline of one's frame of mind that may be blocking one from progressing relative to a certain problem they face.
Obviously, the implied beliefs created by our vision of the future are not necessarily the only ones that will manifest because there are more beliefs in the "mix". And the "mix" will create the sum total. In the end, the sum of all our conflicting beliefs will determine the outcome.
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Speed of manifestation
Some say that if you believe something strong enough it will happen very soon. In my experience, this is not the case. Manifestation speed is not related to the strength of the belief. Manifestation is always INSTANT - even if misunderstood. Most people are simply manifesting delay (and doing so ...instantly).
Now, on a practical level, what people actually mean is whether, for example, one can win the lotto in a week or a year. So the rationale expressed is that if one believes it "more", they'll get it faster. Again, in my experience, this is not the case. What matters is twofold:
1) What timeframe do we consider realistic for the manifestation of a certain possibility: If we ask ourselves then we will usually get a feel for the answer on that. If we don't get the feel, we can phrase it like this: "Can I be a multi-millionaire in a week?" If what I really think is "no", then the answer is no.
Now, if I ask "Can I be a multi-millionaire in a year?", at that point it seems more realistic... so due to being more realistic I can believe it more strongly. But the answer can still be "no" in terms of whether I really believe it will happen - even in a year.
2) Lack of conflicting beliefs: The lack of conflicting beliefs is the shortest route towards instant manifestation.
People will be able to notice this when they are generating vague thoughts in their thought stream and then have things happen right there and then. This is also why the "evil eye" phenomenon "requires" the knocking of wood.
"Knock wood" is simply a reminding process. It could be anything else, like touching our nose. It doesn't hold any real meaning. It's just to remind us that we made an UNCONTESTED (0-conflicts in terms of other beliefs) negative thought about something and we don't really want it to manifest.
So we created a process to remind us when we generate uncontested negative thoughts. Once we are reminded of that, we become more conscious of that thought and say "yeah we don't want this to happen".
By our mere awareness of the fact that we generated an uncontested negative thought, we are then initiating a process of sublimely remembering and re-introducing our programming of blanket beliefs as bigger factors that affect our reality. Blanket beliefs like the "natural order of things", "randomness", "physical causality", etc. In this way we feel safer that all those other perceived mechanisms are ...more responsible for what is happening in the world, not us, and so we will cancel out our prior uncontested uni-directional thought by contesting it with more "believable" beliefs.
Now, the speed of manifestation in unidirectional and uncontested thoughts can be frightening for some, even if they are positive in nature. Our dream reality shares similar characteristics of instant manifestation because the "character" we are "embodying" in our dream does not have conflicting blanket beliefs or other expectations. You think something, you get it right there and then. The mechanics are similar - but the speed appears faster there. In new-age-speak this is attributed to "density", with the "astral" being considered "less dense" and thus being able to offer instant manifestation. But it has nothing to do with density really - it's more about conflicting beliefs, or, more precisely, their absence.
Ultimately, most humans would be extremely frightened if they felt they had the ability to instantly create anything that they were thinking. Thus, in order to protect themselves they have to limit their perception of what they are able to create. They need to believe that instant creation is difficult, otherwise they could be manifesting deadly or catastrophic things.
The mechanisms of multiple conflicting beliefs and the expected delay of manifestation are just ways with which we keep our instant creation in check. Or so we want to believe. Because even that is "virtual": We are still ...instantly creating these perceived delay mechanisms, so the 0-delay relation between consciousness and reality is never really cancelled (nor can it be cancelled).
Conclusion
Positive thinking cannot work based on what one wants to happen. What really matters is what beliefs one has in place and what one's expectations are. Does one really expect a positive outcome? If the answer is yes, one's chances are far higher. If one's answer is no, then there is no real positive thinking involved.
Most cases of "positive thinking" fall into the second category where people are actually expecting a negative outcome, yet they think they are practicing "positive thinking". Naturally, the result will fail them.
This is a very profound idea. And I think you're spot on.
Thanks. I think it must be around 20 years ago when I really "grasped" it. Up to then I was entertaining the "strong belief manifests faster" fallacy.
Sometimes its hard to always think positive because most of the time it can lead a person to failures. When a person thinks positive, he is considering himself a winner when in reality its not, that then is the reason he would think that he is a failure.
You are right, it depends solely on the person who has the capacity to make things possible not the positive thinking.
Yes. If one is pretending consciously, the subconscious will know and say "hmm... why would I be pretending if I was a real winner?" So this can and will lead to failures...
Better start your day by thinking that today i will be facing negativities. It might work on the opposite :)
Be prepared for the worst to be positively surprised by the good stuff, huh :D
You got it right, better not to expect things.
In this case you are expecting that it's better not to expect :D
I guess I have it in my blood to always B +ve
:-P
lol :)
Commenting on the short answer: won't flipping a coin and wishing for heads work for 50% of the people? If probability can explain it, why resort to an analogy with quantum physics?
Commenting shortly on the long answer: why do you illustrate these ideas with references to quantum physics? Certainly you are aware this is very far from scientific consensus. To put it bluntly: why do you try to mask mysticism under scientific references? Why not concede it is indeed faith?
About the short answer: Even random number generators are affected by consciousness (global consciousness project).
About the long answer: Let's say there is a scientific fact that has 2 possibilities. It's either A or B. Scientists disagree on whether it is A or B, based on the way they interpret their findings. Now this "lack of scientific consensus", doesn't mean that the scientists are mystics. And while half of them will be wrong in their interpretation, the other half is right - because they did their job better and interpreted the data right. So it's not "faith" they have, nor are they practicing mysticism due to lack of consensus.
Additionally, thousands of things that have enjoyed a consensus have been overturned by later findings. So those who had a consensus were actually "believers" of something that wasn't true.
Well, the Global Consciousness Project has yet to convince mainstream scientists. Does it mean they're wrong? No. But it does mean they should not be taken as authority. I think my first point stands, which is: if something just works for some and not for others, without explanation, it is not convincing. I've seen dozens of churches claiming to produce real miracles, but just for those with faith. I could be true, but it's not convincing. I can't see the difference from their position and the position you present (does it have a name? I actually don't know).
About the long answer, of course you're right about the consensus thing. In trying to be mild, I ended up using the wrong word. It's not that it lacks consensus, since even the theory that the Earth is round lacks consensus. Speaking plainly, this ideas are not backed by reputable scientists of relevant fields (Deepak Chopra for example has only rudimentary understanding of quantum physics). This idea doesn't follow from our current understanding of science any more than what is proposed by mystics.
The reason I say those things is only one: I am genuinely curious. If you started from science, why you make the leap from science into this belief system? Or if it's the other way around, and you started by the belief, and since science does not back those beliefs, why appeal to science to explain them? Wouldn't it be more helpful to say we believe XYZ but have no idea what's causing it?
Edit: Changed "the theory that the world is flat" to "the theory the world is round". I'm not a flat Earther yet.
If I apply this principle to other sectors of science, there would be a paralysis by analysis situation. I mean, steem is not even based on scientific principles. Based on science and maths, it shouldn't exist. There is no mathematical proof of P not being equal to NP: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P_versus_NP_problem
We could say that all cryptography, cryptocurrency, etc etc, are bogus because they are not based on the mathematical proof that they are not trivial to break. Mathematically, and until proven otherwise, all of these are considered potentially trivial to break (!) and thus useless as a building block.
There should be no https, there should be no online banking, no cryptography, no cryptocurrency. Yet all these exist. We don't say cryptographers shouldn't be taken as authorities since they lack the mathematical proofs required to prove their claims. Are they "convincing" without mathematical proofs? No. They can't ever be convincing unless what they do is mathematically proven.
Because as you pointed out, there is no "scientific consensus" for this whole framework to be considered "science" - but some aspects are.
So it can be termed "beliefs", "pseudoscience" or "ramblings". That's normal because science is incomplete. But that doesn't stop the truth being the truth, whether science has extended its perimeter to include new knowledge, or not.
A PhD in Psychology will not be able to replicate manipulation tactics (suggestion/hypnosis/creation of stimuli-response scenarios to create desired responses) that a mentalist can. The mentalist has a theoretical and practical framework that the psychology student/master/phd never learned because it is not taught in academia. The mentalist is not practicing his "belief system". He knows his "theory" works because he can get results. Is he bothered that he can only perform his manipulation tactics on 60-70-80% of the people and not to 100% to have full replication? No. He doesn't sit there arguing with himself on whether what he is doing is even possible because there is no 100% replication. He knows he can get 100% replication in a lower population threshold instead ("suggestible people") and move on in doing what he does - even while the academics will tell you that something isn't even possible... even extreme things like creating hypnotized criminals and assassins.
I actually know what is causing it, but that would require expansion into other "theories": This reality is a programmed reality / an information based reality. Its functional framework is coded. This happens when X, that happens when Y, etc etc. Everything are code routines and subroutines. Our beliefs and expectations are likewise coded to play a central role on what we get.
Now you could say "but this is a belief too - how can you know that this is a simulated reality running on code?". And the answer to that would most likely not convince you (personal experiences). Personal experience is tricky to replicate because you can tell me "yesterday I was doing X and the Y thing happened" and you have no way of proving that it did happen - although that doesn't mean it didn't happen. You were the only witness, but that doesn't make what happened less real. Still you are unable to prove anything. The good news is that science will manage to prove that the universe is information-based, although it will take a few decades to do so.
Great! Let me remark that I didn't say 'rambling'. You've been nothing but reasonable and articulated so far, and I thank you for it.
But of course, I disagree with the paralysis argument. From Cromwell's Rule I'd argue that we have 100% certainty of nothing at all, but from that does not follow paralysis. We act on what is most probable from our perspective. The matter with the Global Counsciousness problem is that they haven't been able to persuade unbiased scientist with evidence, so we there's no cause for lay people like myself to believe in them for they authority.
The fact I cannot definitively prove either X or not X is true, doesn't mean they're equally probable.
Now, in your mentalist example, he should indeed be worried with discovering what is causing his techniques to fail in some people, because it might help him become more effective. In the church example I gave you, it is usually said that if you didn't get the miracle, it was because of your lack of faith. So there's no falsifying hypothesis. How's it different from your proposition?
But you did provided me with the answer I asked for. The reason you are extrapolating beyond the limits of our scientific knowledge is because of personal experience. Now that's interesting. I frequently say that's the only fair reason I ever encountered to justify religious beliefs. But the problem is, it is only valid for the person experimenting it. Should we allowed ourselves to be persuated by them, we'd by converting to new religions on a daily basis.
Our conversation here's probably coming to an end, but could I ask you one more thing? You said we choose our reality. Every phenomena creates a parallel universe and we choose which is preferred, or something similar to that, right? Doesn't it mean both universes will have a “you” on it? And if so, both yous expected to be in the good universe, but only one you gets to be there, even though you were both exactly the same. Doesn't this invalidate your premise that we can control this phenomenon, since your probability of getting into the right universe is 50%, regardless of your conscious efforts?
positivity brings good karmal
A positive outlook on life is always good :D
here I am thinking positive about your post.
Wow! This is an involved study. I love it. I'm really impressed by how you've framed your discussion.
Definitely. Usually if I'm experiencing a delay, I can identify the cross-intention. When things manifest instantly, it's often because I have no expectation of it's being possible and so don't apply the feeling of lack/noticing absence. When people apply positive thinking, often they listen to the voice that says it's coming without asking what they really feel about it, which is what they really "think." Thanks for writing this post. :)
Thank you too for your comment and nice words :D
I hope you post more on the law of attraction, as I find it fascinating. Some of your responses to the comments here are as good as articles of their own. Excellent work!
It's possible that in the future I might delve more into it - although it's a topic that also attracts a great deal of skepticism. There are a lot of details that are generally missing from new age and spiritual sources regarding this.
The most important thing is what do we want to create and why. This is way more important than the details of reality manifestation mechanics.
If one starts asking questions to themselves they'll realize that most of the things they want to create are actually what the environment has convinced them that they want to create. There is not much originality. Yet the true purpose of understanding how to consciously harness the reality-shaping/reality-creation mechanics, is the emergence of a new human species where we merge with our "spirit" and become like Gods on Earth. This is the only worthy "projection" that must be manifested - but most humans are not even aware of this "option". All other uses of the mechanism pale in comparison. Money? Houses and boats? Fixing health problems? Succeeding in sports/academia/businesses etc? All these don't even come close to the emergence of the God-Human...
I couldn't agree more. It's a brave topic to speak of at all. And it's unnecessary to speak of, too, since language is so limited. I did enjoy your article, though. ;)
Hi,
My response is a little lengthy. I put it as a separate post
https://steemit.com/philosophy/@mgaft1/what-if-i-can-t-think-positive
I will read it and respond within the next hour or so.
Gandhi quote "Your beliefs become your thoughts. Your thoughts become your words. Your words become your actions. Your actions become your habits. Your habits become your values. Your values become your destiny."
Great post... Thoughts are not a source of power. Thoughts are the result of power, and so are experiences.. "Think positive thoughts" is itself a thought.. Even in cases where people are 'trying' to effect an outcome, be it thoughts on manifestation or law of attraction, these are generally driven from the mind. The pure, eternal you, does NOT 'want', it accepts everything. By accepting everything, you resist nothing, thus allowing the '3D Holographic Movie' to change to capture your attention. This reality wants your attention, and will do what it needs to capture it. This reality is reflective of you.