How Thinking Differently Relates To Empathy

How Hard Is It To Have A Paradigm Shift?

Why do I even need one?

Is It Me?…

Have you ever thought about what you believe? I mean think about it for a moment.

Do you realise that everything you believe to be true, affects every part of your daily life? Right from the start of your day when you brush your teeth first thing in the morning and again the last thing at night - as you believe it’s compulsory.

• How we think things are can cause us to falsely defend an opinion.
• What we believe to be true can have us fight for a cause.
• How we see the world can have us redefine how we live.

So where does all of this come from and how do we adjust the thoughts that aren't serving us?

We create approx. 75% of our beliefs, moral compass, and views of life, people, and the world by the time we are 8 years old. As children, we are learning sponges and take everything we are told by the ‘wise adults’ to be gospel.

Whilst this can be great for providing social skills, personal conduct, and other helpful behavioral conditioning, it can also lock in a whole bunch of distorted and downright inaccurate axioms and limiting beliefs*.

These assumptions about our reality come from the perceptions of our life experiences. So 75% of what we believe about our life has been established before the time we even reach high school.

HOW DOES THIS ACTUALLY HAPPEN?

Well, the brain receives - through all of its sensory receptors - information subconsciously and filters it by the amygdala. The filtered info then travels down to the prefrontal cortex and is analysed for the hippocampus to store for future recalling.

This stored information and any associated emotions is where our beliefs are held - and guarded by a defensive gremlin frequently called ego. Ego's job is to keep us alive and safe but as there aren't many life-threatening situations in our modern days, it can get a little overzealous.

IS THERE ANY HOPE FOR US?

Usually, we learn a new experience to reprogram an existing false truth. This isn't as easy as it sounds, because the two experiences aren't always obvious for the hippocampus to 'file as a pair' or recognise the need to replace the original file.

These reprogrammed beliefs can have massive shifts in our life.

PERSPECTIVE SHIFT - we learned something new to consider a situation in a completely different way.

These shifts are generally done on a conscious level. It's that aha moment when we’ve just learned something new that brings a whole depth of new understanding. Such as using a selfie stick to get more people into our group photos.

PARADIGM SHIFT – we have a new attitude or belief about something

Paradigm shifts happen when we adopt a new way of operating. It’s like the version update on software.

Discovering that the man sneaking into his house and leaving presents wasn't real, was a paradigm shift Johnny didn't appreciate. He now thinks it's Creepy!

QUANTUM SHIFT - we redefine and see the world in an entirely new way.

The update to smartphones is an example of a quantum shift. For us, it’s completely reframing an entire construct of how something is previously believed ‘to be’.

Principally paradigm and quantum happen at a subconscious level, at the delta wave frequency.

Sometimes karmic ties and cellular damage have taken place and need to be repaired in order for the shift to be fully integrated with the mind.

IN SUMMARY

Time and time again I’ve witnessed glorious adjustments to relationships and workplaces when new perspectives have been adopted. Taking away the unhelpful position of “it’s them not me’, provides a deeper understanding between previously conflicted individuals.

Working on our own version of the world and recognising when we have blinkers on and not allowing other pieces of the puzzle to be seen.

Those who feel they are 'too sensitive' can wrongly be accused of not being able to cope, when in fact they could be the windows seeing the full picture. 

*Limiting belief - an experience that has been had and has been interpreted in a non-serving manner.

*Axiom - a belief that has not been self-experienced, but is taken on without question.