Why Certainty Is a Limiting Belief December 15, 2006
Posted by The Probabilist in : [Articles], Consciousness, Emotions, Gratitude, Health, Personal Growth, Philosophy, Purpose, Beliefs, Responsibility, Vision, Wealth , add a comment
In the about page is a definition of a probabilist. I’d like to explain myself with greater detail why being certain about anything and everything you can think of can be a limiting belief and a limiting model of reality. The point is also to show why uncertaintly isn’t chaotic, unbalanced or without clear directions.
The best way to introduce this concept is through a great quote I’m having trouble finding an author to. “When you decide what is, you limit yourself from what could be.” Whether these are the exact words or not, their meaning and impact make a lot of sense to me. Your consciousness may need several uplifting or downcasting jolts that help you to awaken and embrace this concept so that it’s a part of your understanding of how the universe and the reality you live in works.
Here are a few examples to better illustrate this view. Did Columbus listen to the common belief that the earth is definitely flat? Did Copernicus listen to the common belief that the earth is definitely the center of the solar system? Did the Wright brothers listen to the common belief that man definitely cannot fly? And did Darwin listen to the common belief that man is definitely separate and superior to animals?
No, they all wanted more evidence of the opposite.
Am I then saying that they are definitely right? Not entirely. I haven’t went around the world, haven’t seen for myself that the sun is at the center of the solar system and I can’t visually see the pattern of species evolving. But what these people have discovered appears more accurate than what was commonly believed prior to their discoveries. They saw the possibility that things may be different than what they seem, and took action. This is the power of being open-minded. It’s the ability to question the status quo of what is, and start wondering what can be. It’s the ability to leave doors open for higher and improved understanding about the nature of things.
Now consider the following opinions. Diseases occur because you attract them. You can live on two hours of sleep per day. You can live a life without any setbacks and misfortunes. You can eliminate any negative feelings you want from your reality - hate, sorrow, disgust, jealousy, worry, pride, anxiety, fear, craving, vanity etc. You can attract all the health, wealth, relationships, happiness and peace you seek. All you need to do is claim them. If you believe these opinions to be incorrect, unattainable or unimaginable, then that’s the reality you will exist in. But if you constantly increase your options, awareness and most of all possibilities and likelihood that all of these ideas may be proven true, then all you need to do is choose to test them for yourself. That’s what great men and women have done and do every single day.
If something doesn’t work or a new belief you tried didn’t present any valid proof, then you can always return back into your comfort zone and try something else. Failing doesn’t make you a failure, not doing anything is what does. You can only lose what you already have, if you decide to discard it. And that only happens after you discover something improved to your liking - something that pushes your whole being and consciousness to a new level. That’s when you have the choice to leave the old you behind and embrace the new You, version 1.01.
This is partly the reason why uncertainty doesn’t make life inconsistent, problematic or overwhelming. There is only one productive direction and it is up. Granted, sometimes you may be perplexed as to which choices result in an upward state of awareness. The bottom line is, the more choices you face and decisions you make, the better the outcomes and your capability to make good decisions. And most importantly, keep exploring new choices and possibilities constantly. The stagnating individuals of today are the ones that deny and avoid making decisions. Thus, they live the lives of others.
The second reason why you shouldn’t take anything for granted is the amount of gratitude you have the power to feel towards your existence. Tomorrow you could be hit by a car and sitting in a wheel chair for the rest of your life. How about losing all of your possessions in a fire or natural disaster. Or losing someone you love to the afterlife. These are also the possibilities and probabilities you may be ignoring because you’ve chosen to neglect them. So stop taking your reality for granted, both the positive and the negative, and start pondering if there’s a truth in the saying that life is what you make it.
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Combining the Areas of Existence December 14, 2006
Posted by The Probabilist in : [Articles], Consciousness, Creativity, Goals, Personal Growth, Purpose, Beliefs, Responsibility, Vision, Work, Abilities , add a comment
This article continues on the Four Areas of Existence article I wrote an introduction to earlier. It’s supposed to give you a better idea of how you can begin to mind map and combine different purposes or tasks together that you can think of by using the areas of existence model. This will then help you to evaluate each of their importance in your life.
At this stage it’s crucial to just throw out lots and lots of alternatives that you currently have the capability to think of. I’ll give you some examples of how I’ve used this technique and what kind of answers you want to receive.
For instance, I could think of tasks like composing music, building a business, writing a book, learning a programming language, giving speeches, joining a humanitarian organization, playing games, inventing a new widget, creating a new model of reality, calculating probabilities, etc. The point is that the list is filled with things you currently do, want to do, could do or have to do. The next step is then to start organizing the answers into the four areas of existence.
For instance, I can combine my ability of statistics, math and probability calculus (mind) with my purpose to help others (spirit) and reach the conclusion that I’ll write a book about how to overcome a gambling habit by showing that it’s a reasonable thing to do. Or I could combine my passion for games (heart) with my physical needs (body) and thereafter create and patent a board game that helps people improve their health and finances.
Once you’ve managed to place a specific task into one or several areas it’s time to evaluate them one by one. An effective method in this process is to use the four actions framework that was presented in Blue Ocean Strategy. The actions are reduce, raise, eliminate and create. If one task offers very little meaning to you and it only addresses one area of your existence then choose to eliminate it or reduce its impact in your life. On the other hand, think about the uplifting and empowering aspects in your life and raise their significance. Once you’re at it you might start to see gaps in where everything is placed and hopefully create completely new tasks or thoughts that address two, three or even four areas. The one that resonates with you the most in all areas is your general purpose in life, for now. Always leave room for improvement or something new that is better.
In my case, my general purpose that tells me what I must, can, want, and should do could be to become financially independent. But it’s a very general and vague purpose. Therefore, I can break it down into more specific tasks I actually do to accomplish this general mission, like writing a book or creating a game, which then addresses one, two or three areas of my existence. My general purpose could also be to “invaluate everyone’s reality”. Or perhaps I could phrase it as “improving the odds in life”. The general purpose is sort of a tag line while you have several distinct tasks that tangibly put your purpose into action.
The goal itself, for instance reaching financial freedom, then opens up even more time and effort to be put into tasks like these. Just keep mixing different aspects of your life together and try finding a solution that takes into account all of your unique demands, skills, passion and purpose. It’s your life and your purpose, so it has to be congruent with your own needs, abilities, desires and contribution. But don’t force yourself into reaching a goal in this exercise, it can take a long time and it is continuously subject to change as you yourself continuously raise your level of consciousness and personal development.
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