The Stories We Tell

Steinhatchee fishingLet’s wrap a little real world living around quantum physics.  The components outlined by Greg Kuhn in Why Quantum Physicists Do Not Fail get no argument from me.

  • Holism – replaces mechanism: “All matter is made up of unified wholes that are often greater than the sum of their parts.
  • Unity – replaces determinism: “There is not necessarily a relationship between cause and effect.”
  • Entanglement – replaces separateness: “The observer and the observed cannot be separated.”
  • Nonlinearity – replaces logical outcomes: “Systems are not linear.”

Welcome new paradigm.  Still, I’ve read many books and heard many prosperity messages; applied them diligently, and like little “Splash” am confounded by situations that just don’t budge.  Why is that?  How I can exchange my old world fish tank for something more productive?

Greg Kuhn gives a Three Step Process which he says will reform my “neural patterns of habitual thought.”  Making changes in these areas will impact my daily life and open up a new universe.

One:  Understand Storytelling: Kuhn says “stop telling it like it is” and start “telling it how you want it to be.”  He reminds me that I choose the stories I tell, and the way I tell them; that I need to avoid using “ugly words.”  He also says “your beliefs are true for you simply because you’ve told yourself the stories so many times.” – OH YES!  Let me solve my storytelling problems.

Two:  See Your Beliefs (and Your Feelings) Objectively: stop pretending my beliefs and feelings “are different than they currently are.”  Pretending doesn’t work – because I don’t believe it.  My feelings and beliefs are true for me, I should never deny or discount them.  But I can reframe them.   Instead of saying “I am sad” – say “I am experiencing sadness in the moment, but sadness is not who I am.”  This depersonalizes my beliefs – reminds me that this is just temporary.  When I tap into and listen to my feelings I am open to hear what belief may be out of sync with my desires and goals.  Remember – “Your beliefs create your expectations and your expectations create your physical experiences.”

Three:  How to Tell New Stories: Kuhn says “the type of story you tell about any event is completely your choice.”  I realize that some of my “stories” are doozies – and NOT what I want out of life!  Time, money, peace are biggies for me – doubt I’m alone there.  I need to “take responsibility” and get “freedom from suffering from this point forward.”  On it!  Create better stories!

Kuhn isn’t saying we’re to “blame” for awful circumstances; nor is he “claiming that people in horrific circumstance, like abused children, are responsible for their circumstance.”  He gives examples of courage and faith and a refusal to be limited by circumstance in the lives of Louis Zamperini and Viktor Frankl.  Laura Hillenbrand chronicled Zamperini’s perseverance in Unbroken – a man who would not give up telling himself a better story despite the odds.  Viktor Frank, one of my personal hero’s, told the horrors of his imprisonment in Auschwitz in his book Man’s Search for Meaning.  He chose to believe that his life had purpose, despite the cruel and brutal environment.

Gratefully my situation doesn’t compare – which gives me perspective.  Greg Kuhn says “All you need to do is stay aware and listen to the stories you’re currently telling, amending them immediately the moment you recognize that the stories are bad ones.” 

There are a few variables for success; like – how long have I carried a limiting belief? – How badly do I want to change my universe and reach my goals? – How diligently will I work to create better stories?  Guess it is all up to that woman in the mirror.

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥NYC 2012 4

“Problems are not stop signs, they are guidelines.” – Robert H. Schuller

Share

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.