If research is to be believed then 12% of our mind is run by the conscious mind and the rest 88% by the subconscious mind.  Conscious mind takes the data from the environment, situations, people we interact with in the moment and runs it through the critical filter, which is the doorkeeper of the subconscious mind. Critical filter is created in the childhood through education, religious, family, cultural and other beliefs and influences. It is an algorithm running which filters what does not suit the program fixed in the childhood. That’s why our conscious mind may reject certain people, places, beliefs or situations without even giving them a chance.

Would like to elaborate this further, for example, you were programmed in the childhood to hoard things because you were told that there are many people out there who are underprivileged or how your parents struggled to put all of that stuff together only for you, that’s when the tendency to not to let go of old things, ideas, emotions and situations kicks in the adulthood. How does this work? Imagine the mind as an empty hard disk, the beliefs are uploaded as files in various folders in the subconscious mind. Approximately around the age of 14 or so, the critical filter is formed. It works as an anti-virus. It blindly rejects the concepts that do not match with the files in the subconscious mind. You may have caught yourself believing that you cant swim, have two left feet, are bad at cooking, are a bit slow with numbers, and many such debilitating, self-depreciating thoughts.

Subconscious mind is not as old as you in fact it goes back to when we moved into being humans. That’s where the fight or flight programming set in. It is a sum total of all the files which contain our likes, dislikes, pleasure, pain, fear, anxiety, traumas, losses, happy memories and so on.

As you go through life and its experiences, the files or feelings associated with the situation open automatically for the pre-programmed reaction. Believe it or not, you are on autopilot. You may be confident about your rational, measured and thought-out actions but it brings a lot out to say that the subconscious drivers protect the conscious mind to make a decision based on actual reality. The reactions, decisions or behaviour will avoid a completely new approach to life. In sum, it will be difficult to change, adapt, grow or move forward rapidly with the times.

This gap, between the conscious, aware, in-the-present mind and the so-powerful subconscious mind creates imbalance and friction. If this tug of war continues then it gives room to diseases. Simply because the body is not performing at its full potential. The brain degenerates, as no new neuro path ways are formed and it’s the same old trodden path. Whereas, if the conscious mind breaks the barrier of the critical filter to bring in fresh perspective, different view point of view then neurons are fired. New neuro-pathways are formed. It’s like building the mind muscle. When this continues, new habits are formed erasing the old way of operating.

When the conscious mind takes the reign of each action, uses will to change the old habits, makes an effort to rewrite the old program, that’s when one will be able to get past the hurdles and create possibilities.

I shall write another piece to elaborate ways to get out of this Subconscious comfort zone.

There is light within us. All we need to do is find, follow and radiate it.