Choice:
Direct your Perceptions & State
Your mind has the ability to control your perceptions. Whether you perceive something as good, bad or indifferent; the choice is completely up to you and within your own control.
You can choose to view each event as positive or negative, as a problem or an opportunity.
So how exactly do you DO this perception control thing? Have a look at this diagram...
Here we see a visual representation of some of the key components in perception control.
As you can see, our Perceptions, and our State of Mind are directly dependent upon one
another, and directly influence one other.
Additionally, they are both directly dependent upon the Senses
which process incoming external stimuli, and the Mind which processes spontaneous
internal thoughts.
Much further discussion could be focused on the concept of Internal Thoughts.
Are they really spontaneous? Where do they come from? What mechanisms are in place
to generate and process them?
For now, I'd like to just accept that Internal Thoughts can and do occur spontaneously,
as we have all experienced. This is the common experience of a thought
"popping into our mind" seemingly from nowhere.
So the Mind and Senses are busily influencing our State and Perceptions. This is happening constantly
at a subconscious level. Every waking moment is filled with sensory input, some are obvious,
and may rise to the level of consciousness: a striking image, or the actions of a particularly
abrasive personality, for example. Others are more subtle: the ambient sounds of wind blowing through
the trees outside your window or the artificial lighting in your workspace are good examples of this.
Even as we sleep, our own Mind generates and processes Internal Thought, continuing to influence
State and Perception.
To begin to exercise control over these responses we must consciously utilize Will, Intent and Choice.
Will is a deliberate desire, a conscious direction. In further articles we will look closer at Will and break it out into
Purpose, Vision, and Goals (see article: Will), but for now we'll consider Will as
a single component. Will is the "Why?" and the "Where To?". Intent makes Will more specific - it's the "What".
(see article: Align Action & Intent)
Intent does not assert its control automatically. A myriad of actively conscious events are required to
overlay Intent onto our Perception and State. These events are Choices.
We make hundreds of choices every day, many trivial, some important. In a very real sense though,
every choice IS important, since each has the potential to influence our State and Perception. The challenge
we each face is to take conscious control of our Choice, through Will and Intent, to influence our State and Perceptions
in a positive, intentional, goal oriented way. We need no longer be slaves to our reactionary, random states and preconceived perceptions.
We can learn to experience freedom - freedom to think, perceive, feel and act in meaningful and joy-filled ways.
Blessings,
Kenneth Goudsward
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