If you could give yourself a better, more positive attitude, be more instinctual, and even improve your stress levels by tapping into your subconscious mind, would you do it? For me, that’s a no-brainer (pun definitely intended).
There are some easy ways to reap the benefits of our subconscious mind that help us on our voyage through this crazy little thing called life, no matter what age we’re at. Here’s everything you need to know about using the power of our subconscious mind for the better.
What is the Subconscious Mind?
To understand the subconscious mind, let’s have a quick lesson on all three levels of consciousness (and we can thank Dr. Sigmund Freud for this multi-conscious level structure).
The Conscious Mind
This includes all of the actions and thoughts in our awareness. For example, when you’re aware of the feel of an item, can smell its scent, or even if you’re feeling thirsty, these are all in your conscious mind. It’s also decision-making and verbal communication. On the other hand, body language can be both conscious and subconscious.
The Subconscious Mind
The subconscious mind includes all of the automatic actions and reactions we’re aware of if we think about them. They’re things like riding a bike and driving a car. They have a learning curve to start, but once we’ve got them down, they’re automatic. This part of the mind is like a computer hard drive with infinite storage. Habits are in this category, too, as the subconscious learns from repetition.
The Unconscious Mind
The unconscious mind includes all of your past memories and events, which are inaccessible no matter how hard we try to remember them. So, think of milestones you did as a baby, like crawling or learning to walk, or even your first word. While you may know about them because someone recorded them and you’ve watched them, without them, you’d never know when and how they occurred.
There are some folks that can recall information about their daily lives with little effort. One great example is Benedict Cumberbatch’s Sherlock Holmes and his “mind palace.” Man, am I envious of that. Called hyperthymesia, they can recall what they wore on a particular day, what they ate, and events that happened. If you want to put a famous name to the six-syllable word, it’s celebrity Marilu Henner.
As a general rule, it can take a month or more to start seeing the benefits of tapping into our subconscious.
How Can You Tap into Your Subconscious Mind?
There are several ways to tap into your subconscious mind, and once you get started, it takes surprisingly little effort.
Meditation
By practicing this ancient method, we can engage and look into our subconscious. It’s also good for stress and negative emotions. If you’re type A like I am, you’ll really have to focus on meditation at first, and don’t beat yourself up over your mind going in a different direction. Just focus on breathing and bring your mind back to start. When that happens for me, I recall my focus word and bring myself back to the center.
Artistic Expression
Creative activity is a great way to unlock the subconscious, and it’s also a way to learn about talents you may not have known you had. Additionally, it can bring about joy and happiness by feeling accomplished. And whether it’s painting your room a new color, drawing a picture, or even coloring with your grandkids, it’s a fun outlet.
Intuition & Instincts
Women tend to have more gut feelings and are more prone to having strong intuition than men. It’s the pull that you can’t ignore, although you may choose to go in a different direction. The pull that you feel is your subconscious talking to you. You know that little voice in your head that’s always leading you in the right direction? Bingo.
Positive Affirmations
Remember Daily Affirmation with Stuart Smalley on Saturday Night Live? The phrase, “I’m good enough, I’m smart enough, and, dog gonnit, people like me,” may have made you giggle, but essentially, those were positive affirmations. The subconscious learns through repetition. And by telling yourself positive points, you can actually change your actions.
Be Around Positive People
If you’re doing your best to change yourself for the better, hanging around Debbie Downers can do just the opposite. Also, hanging around positive people can just make you feel better. That may mean letting go of toxic people in your life. And if you simply can’t drop them, try to engage with them as little as possible.
Learn more about how the people you’re around can affect your drive and attitude.
What Are the Benefits?
By tapping into the subconscious mind, we can reshape our self-concept into a more positive one, and that’s what I’m all about – self-awareness. The older I get, the more I find that things tend to weigh heavily on my mind. And by meditating with yoga, I see a benefit. Plus, I just feel like a much more positive gal.
Don’t think you have to use every one of the ways mentioned above. Start with one or two and progress from there. If they’re not for you, try something else.
Read Next:
Give Your Brain a Break with Mindful Breathing
Constantly Distracted? Consider Mindfulness.
Squash Your Self-Critic with Meditation. Increase Mindfulness and Gratitude.
