Welcome to reThink Your Perspective’s blog. To listen to this episode as a Podcast, click here!
This blog is dedicated to finding, sharing and discussing a variety of topics around the struggles our clients and audience go through. Each episode we will discuss a key concept that many humans struggle with and give you a variety of perspectives for you to see the concept through so you can find one that makes it feel easier to deal with.
We hope that you get some benefit from these blog posts, and we would love to hear your thoughts! Don’t hesitate to like, share and comment at the links.
This instalment features a book which was first suggested to me in several of the ‘Thinking Into Results’* lessons created by Bob Proctor and Sandy Gallagher at the Proctor Gallagher Institute, as well as in many of the live calls, mentoring sessions and other videos I have been watching during my journey and is one that I highly recommend on all of my own live sessions.
It is a truly revolutionary book.
Considering it was first published in 1960, it is astounding to me that it has not become a key text in schools around the world as the information contained within would make every single human a better and more productive person. Not only for the good of our species but for them as individuals as well.
The book is available in most good book shops, online and in person, and I highly recommend you get yourself a copy if my write ups resonate with you. I hope they do the book justice but they are only small snippets.
Stay tuned for my reviews over the next couple of weeks as I re-populate and update these blog posts which were originally written in 2022. My version of the book has space for reflection on each of the chapters so I have included my thoughts at the bottom of each of the chapter summaries.
* – Thinking Into Results is a life altering program that opens your mind to the limitless possibilities you have within you. Using 12 lessons ranging from adjusting your self-image, through leadership qualities and praxis, to the knowing-doing gap, this program is designed and proven to change your life in every way in your relationships, finances, careers, wellbeing and many other areas of your life. Get in touch if you want to know more about this program!
Chapter 4 – Dehypnotise Yourself From False Beliefs.
Chapter 4 of “Psycho-Cybernetics” by Maxwell Maltz is all about dehypnotising yourself from false beliefs. Imagine false beliefs as silly ideas that we have in our minds that aren’t true, but we believe them anyway. It’s like thinking you can’t do something when you actually can!
In this chapter, Maltz explains that we often hold onto these false beliefs because they were planted in our minds a long time ago, maybe by someone else or even by ourselves. But the good news is, we can change these beliefs and free ourselves from their hold.
Belief can be very powerful in effecting behaviour and ability. If you believe you are bad at something, then you will be regardless of your skill level! If you believe you are not worthy / not good enough, you will act that way and will then only be able to see the things that backup that belief. These beliefs about yourself are false. You can do anything you choose to, you are worthy and you are good enough!
False beliefs can hypnotise you. The power of hypnosis is the power of belief. If you believe / are completely convinced that something is true… It has the same effect as if you have been hypnotised. Your beliefs create your self-conception and self-definition, be they true or false, and only you have the power to change them. You can choose whether old beliefs still serve you, or if they need updating!
You choose if you dehypnotise yourself.
Dehypnotise Yourself From Feeling Inferior
We are all inferior in some way when compared to others, I am an inferior painter when compared to Van Gogh say, but that does not make us inferior people. I am a superior painter when compared to a toddler! One person may do running better than another, but they could be better at drawing than the runner. There is no norm, you don’t need to measure up against another person, you just need to focus on what you can do. Find the things that you enjoy doing and those will be the things that you do better than other people.
You are not inferior. There is no one else like you and you should not try to be like someone else. Borrow qualities from others to help shape your personality to who you want to be, yes, but don’t compare yourself to anyone but yourself. There is no common human! No norm or average that we are either inferior or superior to. This is quite a difficult concept to understand for most of us though, myself included.
Our school years are spent being constantly graded against the other kids. We are put into sets based on our educational attributes and we know which set we are in. Our jobs are then based on our grades. And we compare our work results with our colleagues! Comparing ourselves to others to make sure we are on the right track is a built in habit! But what is the right track? Is it the same track for every one of us?
How Do You Dehypnotise Yourself?
One way to dehypnotise yourself from false beliefs is to start by becoming aware of them. Pay attention to the thoughts that pop into your head and question whether they are really true or just something you’ve been believing for a long time. Once you identify these false beliefs, you can start replacing them with positive and empowering thoughts.
Another tip from the chapter is to practice visualisation. This means imagining yourself achieving your goals and living the life you want. By visualising success and happiness, you can reprogram your mind to believe in your abilities and potential.
Use physical relaxation and mental imagining to dehypnotise yourself. Your beliefs and habits form with no effort. You cannot use effort to replace or update them. Making an effort to change something enforces the belief or habit! Instead of forcing it, just focus on the outcome that you want, relax and keep focused on it, then let your servomechanism run with it while all you do is focus on the image of what you want and act as if you are already there. Your body and the universe will do the rest!
How To Integrate This Chapter Into Your Own Life
To integrate the lessons from this chapter into your daily life, try setting aside a few minutes each day to reflect on your beliefs and challenge any negative or limiting thoughts. You can also create a vision board with images and words that represent your goals and dreams, to help reinforce positive thinking.
Remember, you have the power to dehypnotise yourself from false beliefs and create a mindset that supports your growth and success.
Keep practising these tips, and you’ll be on your way to a more confident and fulfilling life!
The copy of the book I have has spaces after each chapter to write and reflect on an experience from your past that is explained by the principles given in the chapter.
This is what came up for me:
All my best results have come when relaxed and just going with the flow, when I wasn’t comparing myself to anyone else or trying to compete or be like any other person. I learnt this around age 15 when I had endured about 6 years of constant bullying because I wasn’t one of the cool kids, even though I was trying to be, and then all of a sudden, I just realised I didn’t want to be like them anyways so why was I trying so hard?
The bullying didn’t stop of course, but I reached a point where whatever they said had no effect on me as I was finding who I was and doing things that made me happy instead; I had changed the belief that to enjoy life I had to fit in with as many people as possible. I made a little friendship group and that was enough.
As soon as I start applying effort to anything I am doing, things start to go off track! However, if I step away from the thing, relax, and then go back to whatever it was I was struggling with, I easily overcome the problem that was causing the frustration. It feels like the stepping away reopens pathways in my mind and new ideas or approaches enter to solve the problem.
This is the same when I am updating outdated beliefs, I have found through trial and error, that trying to force a change, force myself to stop doing a habit (caused by a belief) that doesn’t serve me (social media scrolling anyone!?) I can’t stop it, but if I then do something else instead (like pick up a book, or a creative project) the habit eventually dies away and the new habit takes its place.
This doesn’t happen overnight!
It takes time yes, but the result is worth it! And it only takes a little conscious effort to notice the unproductive habit or outdated belief and then do something else instead. The more you choose the other belief or habit, the easier it becomes to do it automatically each time.
What Do You Think?
What is coming up for you after reading this summary? Comment below or send me a message. I would love to help you go deeper into understanding your personal success mechanism and get it working more efficiently for you.
To your success,
Jaiye
