Do I Trust My Eyes?
“Humans see what they want to see.”
-Rick Riordan, American author
Several weeks ago, this image popped up in my Facebook feed. I believe some of you would have also seen this. What do you see?
Credit: Jam Press
At first instance, I saw a man running into the forest but after taking a longer look, I saw a black dog running out. The Sun even published an article on this image (just click on the image and it will bring you to that article). There is even an analysis in the article that if you were in an anxious state of mind, you would have seen the man first, possibly escaping from something threatening. However, if you were in a state of calm confidence when you looked at this image, you would have immediately seen the dog. I don’t buy into this but feel free to read the article for fun and with a pinch (maybe, heaps!) of salt!
The interest and discussions around this image made me think of the power of suggestion and external influence on our perception. If you had only seen the man running and didn’t know that I had spotted a dog, it is likely that you would not have given this image a second glance. However, now that you are aware that there is another possibility of viewing this image, you will take a closer look to see if you can find the dog in the image. You might even feel unconscious pressure to spot the dog after you have read the article in The Sun where it appeared that the majority only saw the dog. Perhaps, a nagging thought may crop up, “Is there something wrong with my eyes? Why can’t I see the dog?”
Psychological scientists Maryanne Garry and Robert Michael of Victoria University of Wellington, along with Irving Kirsch of Harvard Medical School and Plymouth University, delve into the phenomenon of suggestion, exploring the intriguing relationship between suggestion, cognition, and behaviour. You can read a summary of their research here published by The Association For Psychological Science. They explained that the power of suggestion shows up as “our ‘response expectancies’, or the ways in which we anticipate our responses in various situations. These expectancies set us up for automatic responses that actively influence how we get to the outcome we expect. Once we anticipate a specific outcome will occur, our subsequent thoughts and behaviours will actually help to bring that outcome to fruition.”
For example, if you believe you’re the right candidate for the job and gear yourself up to it thinking that the interview will go well, you’ll stand a greater chance of impressing your future employer and landing the job than if you went to the interview feeling pessimistic and lacking confidence.
I recalled that my elder daughter told me that her Chinese teacher commented her that her essays were too simple, as though they were written by a much younger girl. She took it to heart and believed that her essays were of poor quality. It took us a while to encourage her and to help her regain her confidence in this area. We told her to see it as an area of growth and for her to prove her teacher wrong. She liked the idea of it being a challenge and is also feeling more confident about her essay writing skills now.
Imagine if her teacher had provided the constructive feedback in a more positive way…that my daughter needed to improve but she showed potential for her story telling skills. My daughter would have felt much better about it and be even more motivated to improve herself rather than feeling dejected.
That’s the power of suggestion! It’s no wonder that every day, we are bombarded with images from various product marketing streams telling us that we will be happier, healthier and wealthier if we buy products X, Y and Z. If we didn’t have them, we would be miserable. Do you realise that you almost immediately feel thirsty after watching an enticing advertisement of a cool drink? So, where does this leave us? Are we helpless and tossed about by every suggestion that we are bombarded with?
“A suggestion has no power in and of itself. Its power arises from the fact that you accept it mentally.”
We need to be aware of our thoughts and how they are driving us to live our lives. Do we blindly follow every thought that resides in our minds? Are we able to suspend judgment, take a step back and look at our thoughts as floating leaves down a river, recognising that they don’t take hold and overpower us if we don’t allow them to? Are your thoughts empowering you to live life purposefully? Are your thoughts holding you back in fear?
The first step to reclaiming your life and redirecting it to the way you want it to be is to be aware that your thoughts are not who you are. They are simply thoughts. They only take hold of you if you allow them to. We can develop skills to be mentally fit and learn a higher way of thinking, one that is calmer and has a clear focus on our goals and dreams. Interested to find out more? Contact me here for a complimentary 30-minutes call to learn more about how I can support you as your coach in reducing the stronghold of your negative thoughts!
