Think You Don't Know? Think Again
One of the biggest lies we tell ourselves is that we don't know.
I often tell my students, when they reply with 'I don't know', that that's a lazy answer.
Because when we really press ourselves, we really do know, or at least our brain can figure it out.
The answer is in our brains, somewhere.
We just have to be willing to look.
Our brains were created to solve problems.
But our primitive brain doesn't love to get to work solving problems because it takes energy and effort to start thinking.
So our first gut reaction, our primitive brain reaction, is to say we don't know.
But not only is it a lie, it keeps us stuck because we don't feel like we can make any decisions until we do know.
So, here are two questions you can ask yourself when your first thought about a problemĀ is 'I don't know':Ā
1.Ā If I did know, what would I think?
2. What advice would I giveĀ a good friend who asked for help with this problem?
There's something about separating the question out from ourselves that helps our brain to engage.
The primitive brain is going to resist looking for an answer because that will mean energy and effort to change our life trajectory.
If we will engage our pre-frontal cortex, our thinking brain, by asking one or both of these questions, we will find that our brain really can figure it out.
Give it a try and tell me what you think!
Want to dig a little deeper?Ā
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