Project New Mind

Today's wisdom says you need to quiet your mind and shut out these constant thoughts. Turns out, this wisdom might be off-target by a wide margin When faced with complex problems, we know the brain will hit a point of virtual overload. When this happens there is a switch over to subconscious mind processing. A mind shift towards creative problem-solving. It’s like the conscious mind becoming overloaded and saying “Get this fecking problem out of here so I can get on with active processing.”

Let’s be honest here. It's frustrating as hell to fall back into old habits that you know are negatively impacting your life. The sickening part is that you have put up with this for years. You know the feeling, like I do. It's like trying to swim up the face of a waterfall. We repeatedly come up with strategies to break out and better our lives. Yet, we often end up feeling powerless to make positive change.

I endured low self-esteem for most of my life. One day, I shared this with my wife and best friend of over forty years. She could not and has not accepted that it’s true. That alone should reveal how sufferers of this affliction can effectively hide it. I call it an affliction because it creates conditions that affect one’s ability to enjoy life, maintain good relationships, and perform daily tasks. If unattended, low self-esteem can lead you into a cycle of distress and isolation. Low self-esteem is also a significant factor in the level of financial success you enjoy in life. Like many sufferers, I created a persona of confidence, a facade. Facades serve us well, but we know that whatever we are hiding is waiting in the wings, making our stomachs roll and palms sweat and preventing us from stepping up to lead. Are you hiding...?

No matter where you want your life to go, you will be rooted to where you are unless you are willing to leave your mind behind. I have done a fair bit of travelling—much of it to isolated Paradise islands.  This was another Paradise Island, but this one would be different. I know where the island dream came from. Around age 12, I was with my family watching a travel show on TV while foul winter weather hammered against the window. And then...

There is a lot we don’t want to face in life. Most of it we bury, and no one knows about it. Well… we hope that no one knows. Facing up to ourselves is one of the hardest things we will ever do, and I suspect this is why many people turn away or even run from the thought of self-analysis. We want better lives, even though we know that would involve some personal effort. Suddenly, we get a spark of an idea and feel like we should take action!  In this decisive moment, we say… “I can do this. this is it.”  Today is the day when I go all in. Today is the start of this incredible idea. Clear our desk for the grand kick-off Buy a new dedicated notebook. Line up our pens - sharpen our pencils But then something happens… You start with excellent intentions; I know that because I feel the same. But there is this ‘thing’ that stands in your way. Furiously, we make a start…

Today, August 20th, 2024, is my 65th Birthday, which reminds me that the world is changing faster than ever before.  Science reports that human evolution is accelerating, but compared to technology, we are in a race similar to that of the hare and the tortoise.  Some say we are doomed and that the human mind will become redundant with the rise of AI. I don't buy it… On the contrary, I believe our minds can evolve into something remarkable! This evolution of mind will almost certainly require us to gain access to a deeper level of information processing. The good news is that Cognitive Psychologists have been telling us for decades that our minds have this deep processing power. The issue is that we have not learned how to access it. Daily, I see tremendous opportunities for those willing to suspend some of their beliefs and open up to seeing the world through new eyes. Since we know our mind is doing the actual seeing, it stands to reason that the mind should be our focus. I like to think of attaining a deep processing mind as a goal to be achieved.  And as I like to have names for projects and goals, I think.  Project New Mind is an excellent name to run with We live in exciting times. Let's get to it!