What you “see” and interpret as reality, is created by internal working “models” in your mind. Mental models of the world are formed in your earliest years of development and continue to expand throughout life. These mental models or paradigms are built around everything that you have learned and make up the conscious and unconscious beliefs (and biases) that motivate you to both good and bad behaviors. Additionally, these mental models or programming also involve how you perceive the world; in other words, the lenses you use to “filter” information. There are as many ways for your mind to filter data as there are people on the planet. And, it’s important to understand some of the more general ways that filters work. In this way, you will be able to promote changing “what” you do through “how” you see it. Doing things differently as a result of seeing and experiencing things differently constitutes the beginning of making changes in your life to get different results.

Let’s look at some of them:

Associated/Disassociated Filters
Associated filters are your perceptions of an event and looking at it from “inside” your body. As an example, think about sitting by your computer… You are able to hear the sounds through your ears, see the screen through your eyes, touch the keys of your computer with your fingers, and feel the emotions again that you felt at the time. You are then filtering the event in an associated way. You are in your body. If on the other hand you saw yourself as though you were an outside observer and experienced yourself as if in a movie, then you are dissociated.

Take a moment to think about your room as you are in it. Notice the placement of the furniture, your computer and other tools. Also, notice the colors and lighting. As you become more aware of the space, notice any sounds, are they loud, soft, pleasant, or annoying. Become aware of your body, feel its textures and pressure, sense the parts of you that are touching the furniture or the ground, feel the temperature of the room. Is it warm or chilled? Notice smells or tastes; perhaps you eat lunch or a snack at your desk from time to time. Pay attention to any emotions, tensions, excitement, etc. and to the location in your body. What you are doing is experiencing an associated state.

Now, step back and view the same scene as though you were someone else looking at you. See yourself in your office and notice everything “external” to your body… sounds and sights. See the whole you and be aware of how the “whole” you looks. This is a dissociated state. It is detached from your inner experience. Why is this important? The ability to associate or dissociate is a fundamental skill, with each state offering different benefits in order to experience feelings, emotions, and events as though you were experiencing them again; or to distance yourself from unpleasant, or traumatic situations and reduce the emotional content.

Negative events of your past can sap your strength and compromise your resolve. It is not only helpful but empowering to be able to dissociate and distance yourself from these events. Additionally, you can manipulate the filter by increasing the distance of the picture in your head through increasing or decreasing what you see, hear, feel, taste, smell, and touch. It is extremely important to helping reduce the intensity of old, nagging traumas and memories that can significantly take away from your discipline and focus. On the other hand, uplifting and intensely positive visions of the future can support your outcomes by associating into and feeling, touching, tasting, smelling and seeing what it will be like when it is achieved. And here’s another important point: with regard to stress and trauma, those people that relive memories in an associated way add to their stress, and experience longer lasting and more concentrated emotions because they experience the event as though it were happening all over again. Those with the lowest levels of stress are able to dissociate and detach from painful events.

Make sure to check in tomorrow to read and learn about two additional filters that will help you reach your goals in a more effective way.