jung and unconscious

Jung concept of collective unconscious is based on his experiences with schizophrenic persons since he worked in the Burgholzli psychiatric hospital.

Though initially Jung followed the Freudian theory of unconscious as the psychic strata formed by repressed wishes, he later developed his own theory on the unconscious to include some new concepts. The most important of them is thearchetype.

Archetypes constitute the structure of the collective unconscious - they are psychic innate dispositions to experience and represent basic human behavior and situations. Thus mother-child relationship is governed by the mother archetype. Father-child - by the father archetype. Birth, death, power and failure are controlled by archetypes. The religious and mystique experiences are also governed by archetypes.

The most important of all is the Self, which is the archetype of the Center of the psychic person, his/her totality or wholeness. The Center is made of the unity of conscious and unconscious reached through the individuation process.

Archetypes manifest themselves through archetypal images (in all the cultures and religious doctrines), in dreams and visions. Therefore a great deal of Jungian interest in psyche focuses on dreams and symbols interpretation in order to discover the compensation induced by archetypes as marks of psyche transformation.

The collective unconscious is an universal datum, that is, every human being is endowed with this psychic archetype-layer since his/her birth. One can not acquire this strata by education or other conscious effort because it is innate.
We may also describe it as a universal library of human knowledge, or the sage in man, the very transcendental wisdom that guides mankind.

Jung stated that the religious experience must be linked with the experience of the archetypes of the collective unconscious. Thus, God himself is lived like a psychic experience of the path that leads one to the realization of his/her psychic wholeness.

Jung about the Collective Unconscious

The collective unconscious - so far as we can say anything about it at all  - appears to consist of mythological motifs or primordial images, for which reason the myths of all nations are its real exponents. In fact, the whole of mythology could be taken as a sort of projection of the collective unconscious... We can therefore study the collective unconscious in two ways, either in mythology or in the analysis of the individual. (From The Structure of the Psyche, CW 8, par. 325.)

Personal and Collective Unconscious At first the concept of the unconscious was limited to denoting the state of repressed or forgotten contents. Even with Freud, who makes the unconscious - at least metaphorically - take the stage as the acting subject, it is really nothing but the gathering place of forgotten and repressed contents, and has a functional significance thanks only to these. For Freud, accordingly, the unconscious is of an exclusively personal nature, although he was aware of its archaic and mythological thought-forms. A more or less superficial layer of the unconscious is undoubtedly personal. I call it the personal unconscious. But this personal unconscious rests upon a deeper layer, which does not derive from personal experience and is not a personal acquisition but is inborn. This deeper layer I call the collective unconscious. I have chosen the term "collective" because this part of the unconscious is not individual but universal; in contrast to the personal psyche, it has contents and modes of behaviour that are more or less the same everywhere and in all individuals. It is, in other words, identical in all men and thus constitutes a common psychic substrate of a suprapersonal nature which is present in every one of us.

a guide to creative visualization

Creative visualization is a mental technique that uses the imagination to make dreams and goals come true. Used in the right way, creative visualization can improve your life and attract you success and prosperity. It is a power that can alter your environment and circumstances, cause events to happen, and attract money, possessions, work, people and love into your life.
Creative visualization uses the power of the mind, and is the power behind every success.
By visualizing a certain event, situation, or an object, you attract it into our life. It is a process that is similar to daydreaming. For some people, this might look like magic, but there is no magic involved, only the natural process of the power of thoughts and natural mental laws. It is like having a genie at your disposal!
There are people who use this technique naturally in their everyday affairs, not being aware that they are using some sort of power. All successful people use it consciously or unconsciously, attracting the success they want into their life, by visualizing their goals as already accomplished.

Creative Visualization and the Power of Thoughts

How does it work and why?
The subconscious mind accepts the thoughts that you often repeat. When it accepts them, it changes your mindset accordingly, as well as your habits and actions. This brings you into contact with new people, situations and circumstances.
Thoughts are endowed with a creative power that molds your life, and attracts what you think about.
Thoughts travel from one mind to another, and if they are strong enough, they can be unconsciously picked up by people, who are in a position to help you achieve your desires and goals.
We are part of the Omnipotent Power that has created the universe, and therefore, we participate in the process of creation. Bearing this thought in mind, there is no wonder that thoughts materialize.
Stop for a moment and think - You are an indivisible part of the great Universal Power! This means that your thoughts can come true! Not all your thoughts, but those that are focused, well-defined, and often-repeated.
Thought is energy, especially a focused thought, soaked with emotional energy. Thoughts change the balance of energy around us, and bring changes to the environment in accordance with them.
Most people think and repeat certain thoughts quite often. They focus their thoughts on their current environment and situation, and therefore, create and recreate the same sort of events and circumstances.
This process preserves the same "world" and status quo. It is like watching the same film over and again. The good news is that you can change the film by changing your thoughts. You can visualize different circumstances and situations, and in this way, create a different "reality".
By changing your thoughts and mental images, you change your "Reality".You are not employing magic or supernatural powers, but using only natural powers and laws that everyone possesses. It is not something "Material" that you change. You only change your thoughts and attitude, but they change and reshape your world.
If, for example, you live in small apartment and need a larger one, instead of brooding about your fate and lack of money, change your thoughts and attitude, and visualize living in a bigger apartment. This is not difficult to do. It is like daydreaming.

Overcoming Limited Thinking

Creative visualization can do great things, but for every person, there are some areas, which he or she might find hard to change, at least in the immediate future. The power of visualization is a mighty power, but there are some limits to using it. These limits are within us, not in the power.
We often limit ourselves and cannot look beyond a limited circle. We limit ourselves by our thoughts and beliefs. We limit ourselves to the life we know.
The more open-minded we can be, and the bigger we dare to think, the greater are our opportunities and possibilities. Limitations are within our minds, and it is up to us to rise above them.
It may take some time until things start to change. Simple, small demonstrations of this power may come fast, but bigger results may need a longer time to happen.
The time and effort put forth in this study are really worthwhile. Have faith and patience and results will start appearing.

An Example of Creative Visualization

Years ago, before I got married, I decided to visualize having a date. I imagined myself sitting in a restaurant and talking with a girl. I concentrated on this image several times during the day, several minutes each time.
The next day, a women working in the same place where I worked, asked me if I can come to talk with her. I hardly ever spoke with her, maybe just saying good morning. I went to her desk, and she asked me whether I had a girl friend. When she heard that I didn't, she proposed to introduce me to one of her friends, and then gave me her phone number.
When I got home I called the girl, and asked her to meet me. We met on the same day in a restaurant, exactly as I visualized.
All this happened within about 24 hours. Surprising isn't it? This power can sometimes work really fast.
Oh, you are curious to know what happened with that date? Well, nothing, because she was not the type of girl I was looking for. I used the power of visualization rather haphazardly, not thinking about how I wanted her look like, about her character, etc. I just thought about meeting a girl, a wish that came true.

Concise Guidelines for Creative Visualization:

• Define your goal.
  
• Think, meditate and listen to your intuition to ascertain that you really desire to attain this goal.
  
• Ascertain that only good will result from your visualization, for you and for others.
  
• Sit alone in a quiet place, where you will not be disturbed.
  
• Relax your body.
  
• Breathe rhythmically and deeply several times.
  
• Visualize a clear and detailed mental image of what you desire to get or accomplish.
  
• Use in your imagination all the five senses of sight, hearing, touch, smell and taste.
  
• Add desire and feelings into what your mental image.
  
• Visualize at least twice a day, about 10 minutes each time.
  
• persevere with your visualization, day after day, with, patience, hope and faith.
  
• Stay positive, thinking positive thoughts, feeling positive feelings and using positive words.
  
• During the day, when negative thoughts and doubts arise, replace them with positive thoughts. As each negative thought enters your mind, immediately substitute it with a positive thought.
  
• Keep an open mind, so that you recognize opportunities and take advantage of them.
  
• After concluding your visualization session, say attentively and earnestly, "Let everything happen in a harmonious and favorable way for all involved".

Use the power of imagination only for your and others' good, and never try to use it to get something that belongs to others or hurt others. Make sure that what you are creating is good for all involved, and cause no harm to your environment.

Though the manifestation of your goal might sometimes happen in a sudden and expected manner, most of the time it will happen in a natural and gradual manner, one thing leading to another. If you desire money, it won't necessarily drop on your head from the sky or you will win it in the lottery. It will more probably come through a new job, promotion, a business deal or through various other channels.

Our thoughts and feelings, and the mental images we carry in our mind, affect our life. By changing them we change our life. This means that we have to be careful with our thoughts and how we feel about them, otherwise we might get things and enter into situations that you do not want, and then we will have to find ways to get rid of them. Better think and visualize what that we really and truly want, and which will improve our life.

Approach this mental work with a positive attitude, earnestness and faith, but at the same time with some detachment, and regarding it as a sort of game or play. This attitude will prevent inner tension and disappointment, if things don't happen as expected.

creative visualization

“I Want”

It may seem obvious. But many of us are vague when it comes to setting intentions and goals or lack clarity about what it is that we want.

It’s important to be clear about what you want and why you want it. This keeps you focused. Desire is one of the strongest motivators that can keep you going through all the obstacles, keep your willpower strong and help you to persist and persevere even when things seems impossible.

Knowing why you want a particular goal is equally as important as knowing what you want. For instance, how will your life be different and better by achieving this goal? Or how will it positively impact the lives of the people around you?

Desire generates both hope and faith. It acts as an initiating magnet that draws what you are hoping for towards you.

But beware! If you want something with a sense of panic, stress and desperation or a sense of fear, then the attainment of your goal will become more elusive. Instead of attracting what you want, you may even repel it.

However  if you desire your goal with a sense of positive expectancy and anticipation or excitement, this will help to draw to you the resources and the contacts you may need to help bring your goals into reality.

“I Can”

Preparation and planning are crucial to ensure that you are equipped for whatever it is that you want to do, create or achieve. This may mean doing the required research or gaining the necessary skills so that your confidence in your ability is well-founded and well-placed.

It’s no good just wanting something though and having the potential capacity to pull it off.

You have to believe in the plausibility and the possibility of your goal becoming a reality.

If in your heart of hearts, it seems too much like a pipe dream or wishful thinking, then all the desire and skill in the world won’t help you to achieve your goal.

Many people believe that the opposite of being realistic is being optimistic. Some scientists even describe optimism as a flaw in the human brain, an enemy to rational thought.

But optimism – a belief that things can and will get better – helps to lower stress and maintain a healthy immune system (according to other scientific research). So take your pick!

Rather than viewing optimism as a flaw in the human brain and as a barrier against rational thought and realism, I prefer to define it as confidence in one’s self and skills, confidence in thepeople that may have the ability to assist you towards your goal and a belief that Life itself (or the Universe or God or whatever you may choose to call this Force) is moving you towards your goal. Beliefs are not facts. But they can be more powerful than facts when they take hold of the psyche and they can become a self-fulfilling prophecy for good or for ill.

“I Will”

Your will, determination, persistence and perseverance are also important – especially if you are pursuing the fulfilment of a long-term goal.

You will also need to plan and organise your present life and external environment around the fruition of your future goal.

You need to factor in the likelihood of delays, disappointments and setbacks along the road to success.

You may well need to create a Plan B and a Plan C as well – just in case your Plan A takes longer than expected.

This mindset of desire, faith and determination will help you to surmount obstacles much easier as well as speed up the process of manifesting your goals.

The Domino Effect

A Mindfully Positive Path to Goal-Setting

Published on February 7, 2012 by Neil Farber, M.D, Ph.D. in The Blame Game

What's up with the Dominoes?
If you didn't read my last article about practical goal-setting in terms of setting up dominoes, here's a brief overview.
We determine our goals (more about how to do this in the next article) and then begin to lay out our dominoes. Every domino is a goal. The final domino may be our ultimate goal, but this domino is no different from all of the other dominoes. We alone determine the pathway and the journey to reach that final goal. The dominoes along the way are not problems, obstacles, situations, or even challenges. They are also goals, albeit smaller goals that we have established to achieve our final goal.
What are the advantages of viewing goal-setting in this way?
Process Driven
As Harvard Professor, Dr. Ellen Langer has written, one of the characteristics of mindfulness is a focus on process over outcome. By acknowledging that only you can set up your dominoes, you have the choice of where those dominoes are placed. You also have ongoing choices of whether you want to knock each one over to continue on that particular pathway or rearrange your dominoes to establish a new path—a new journey. Dominoes can always be moved—they are never set in stone.

As my daughter has stated, "my dominoes have been rearranged so many times, they look like abstract art." If you don't knock over that last domino, your life and time has not been wasted, you have still benefited from the experience. As each domino represents a goal, knocking over each domino provides a sense of accomplishment; a step in the direction of empowerment. If you never reach your final domino, you have still benefited by growing and attaining knowledge that may be used in all sorts of ways in the future along other paths. There is no wasted time.

Positive Focus: Again this is all about choices. Establishing where to put your dominoes is your choice. In addition, whether to pursue knocking down each domino is also your choice. As such, you must acknowledge that no one but you can set up your dominoes. The path is yours alone to establish and to follow or to not follow. This journey and each of the dominoes along the pathway are "want to's" and "get to's". Nobody is making you do these things. You have the freedom to choose and thus there are no "have to's" or "got to's". No one is doing this to you.

There is no one to blame. You have chosen this path. Simply acknowledging this fact will lead to an empowering enlightenment. The result of which is an infectious positive spiral. Others will be also be inspired and motivated by how much control you have over your life (they have just as much control but have not yet realized this).

Mindful Approach: When we concern ourselves and are able to maintain a focus on the dominoes at hand without always having to reference the final domino in our pathway, we are better equipped to spend our time in the "now" rather than the future. This is a mindful technique in which we approach each of our goals along the path with openness and interest. While we maintain our final goal and it remains in the background as something that keeps us directed and centered, it does not involve our primary attention. We will do a better job at the task at hand and greatly improve both our chance of success and our satisfaction if we are living fully in the moment.

Attitude of Gratitude:  When we change our have to's and got to's into want to's and get to's we immediately exchange our blaming behavior into one of gratitude. The focus is on our personal responsibility for how we choose to set up our dominoes. We become more appreciate of the journey, the process and of other people.

Let's look at a few examples:

#1  My goal is to climb Mount Everest. I have a choice at how I view this goal.

Choice 1) How will I prepare for this? I have to get into better physical condition and learn about this mountain and how to deal with high altitudes. I have to buy the supplies and equipment. I have to book a flight and arrange for guides. This is going to force me to take at least 5 weeks off work—that could be a big problem. Finally, I have to climb the mountain until I reach the summit. None of this sounds like much fun. I'm highly motivated to reach the summit because if I don't this will all have been a big waste of time, money, effort, and energy.

Choice 2) If I look at this a different way, I want to climb Mount Everest because I love the outdoors and the challenge. Thus, I get to learn more about the mountain and will really benefit from understanding how to deal with high altitudes. I will obviously want to have the proper supplies and equipment to improve my chance of success and my comfort along the way. I will be fortunate enough to visit Nepal and Tibet and look forward to meeting all kinds of like-minded individual including the Sherpa guides. I'll be getting a much-deserved long vacation from work and best of all, I will have the opportunity to ascend the highest and most famous mountain in the world. Every step will be an adventure. I hope to reach the summit, although I realize there is some chance that this won't happen. Whether I summit or not, this will certainly be the adventure of a life time. I'll see and do things that I've only read and dreamt about.

 #2  My goal is to be a doctor. Most doctors start off by going to college, graduating from college, taking the MCAT exam, and applying to medical school. They then take classes in medical school and if they pass those basic science classes, begin to work in the hospital, study more clinically-related material, and actually take care of patients. There is a national medical license examination that one is also required to pass to be able to practice medicine legally. So, what kind of doctor do I want to be? Obviously, I want to be a great doctor. How can I achieve this goal? By doing well in my classes and studying hard for my exams. I want to take these classes and exams because if I don't, I won't be able to achieve my goal of becoming a doctor. We most often hear this referred to as, "I have to take this class" or "I have to take that exam". No you don't. You could change your dominoes and establish another goal. You could flow along a different path and not become a doctor or perhaps you may find a path that does not require you to take that specific exam. No one is forcing you to take this journey. There are no "have to's". You should want to take that exam and want to do well in that subject because that will have an impact on how well you are prepared to be a physician.

Now I'm on call in the hospital and it's the middle of the night. I'm assigned to take care of the next patient who comes into the emergency room. Does that mean that this is a "have to"? No, I am only here because I chose to be here. I could change careers or I could call in sick. Nobody can make me take care of this patient if I don't want to. These are the dominoes that I've laid out. You could say that there are certain things that I have to do if I want to become a doctor. I would argue that there are certain things that you get to do if you want to become a doctor.

To achieve more fulfillment and satisfaction in life you should focus on the journey, the path, and the process. Thus, you will want to learn whatever you can along the way. If you want to be a doctor to help people, than it would stand to reason that you would want to know as much as possible about the science behind medicine so that you will be better prepared to take care of your patients.

When you acknowledge that you have choices and that you are taking an exam because you want to or showing up at work on a Sunday because you want to or waking up in the middle of the night because you want to, there is an intrinsic feeling of inner strength.

When I've passed on this message to a large audience, there is usually someone who comments that there are certain things that we don't have a choice about like going to work. They will claim that they have to have a job because they have to pay their mortgage and they have to send their child to college. The fact is that there are millions of people (especially nowadays) who do not have jobs and are unemployed. There are also plenty of other potential careers for you to enter or try out. The comment that you have to go to this particular job is simply not true. You show up at work because you want to be there. If your colleague stays home and pretends that they are sick or if they quit the job, it is because they are acting on their choice to no longer work there. You can do the same. When you weigh the benefits and drawbacks of continuing to work at your job, you may conclude that it is better to continue to work there than to go on unemployment. You have now made a conscious decision to stay at your job and are now able to convert all associated have to's and got to's  into want to's and get to's. 

This is not just a game of semantics and playing self-induced mind games. It is an escape from continual complaining and blaming as we believe that our lives are being determined by others.

Several months ago I saw a colleague at a national conference. He is a very well known researcher in his field. When I asked him what he was doing that day, he replied, "I have to moderate a session in a few minutes." My first reaction was to say, "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that." When you "have to", then someone is making you do something that you don't necessarily want to do. However, this wasn't the case. I know for a fact that he had a choice and that he chose to moderate the session. It is one of his goals to be active in the research community and contribute in national meetings. It was probably a "get to" but it's hard to speak for someone else.

Dominoes vs Rainbows

Practical goal-setting—get out your dominoes!

Published on December 8, 2011 by Neil Farber, M.D, Ph.D. in The Blame Game

I recently wrote about choices and recognizing how much of our lives are under our control. The acknowledgment of this power is awesome and inspiring. It allows us to overcome obstacles, arise to new challenges, embrace changes, renew relationships, and quit the Blame Game.
In a similar way, I'd like to talk about choices in terms of our hopes, dreams, and goals. Buddha said, "it is better to travel well, than to arrive." Becoming journey-oriented, rather than outcome-oriented is essential to creating our own positive reality in a mindfully spiritual way. I propose a "domino" theory of goal-setting and urge you to give up on the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Yes, you can still believe in the tooth fairy...
The Rainbow: Since an early age, we have been misguided to believe that there is a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow (my apologies if I've just dashed your hopes). While this rainbow/pot of gold fantasy sounds like it would be a positive influence, in reality it hurts our chances of success and is fraught with the probability of disappointment. This "pot of gold" is elusive and something that we must search for like our "happy place". Neither the pot, nor the gold is part of the rainbow and there is not even a path to the pot of gold. While the pot of goal may be our goal, the journey is never defined or clear to us. We don't actually go along the rainbow to find the pot of gold, because that would be impractical and unnecessary. All we need to do is show up somehow to the place where the rainbow meets the ground. The fact that this is impossible makes goal-achievement unrealistic. This type of thinking is responsible for mindlessness. We become product- and outcome-oriented. Our happinessdepends on locating the pot and the hope that it is indeed filled with the type of gold that we will bring us health and happiness.

Dominoes: Let me propose something new. We each have many goals, hopes, dreams and aspirations in life. Each of these is represented by a domino. The journey to each goal is represented by a path of dominoes all set up in close proximity to each other. The final domino is what we would typically think of as our end goal. "To be a writer", "to be a doctor", "to graduate from college", "to buy a new Mercedes", "to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro", "to be a good father", etc. It is our responsibility to identify what journey we should travel along to achieve this goal - what dominoes need to be set up along the way. Once we establish a domino path, we must now acknowledge that each of these dominoes is not a problem, an obstacle or even a challenge. They are additional goals. They are things that we want to accomplish along the way to our final goal. All of the dominoes look alike because they are all goals. The last goal isn't any bigger or better than the other goals along the way. The dominoes are intimately interconnected and each time a domino is knocked over, we have learned, grown, developed, and improved in some tangible way. If, during our travels, we are derailed, unable to knock down a domino, or consciously decide that our goal has changed, the journey was not a waste of time.

Reaching the last domino is not all that is important; we have still benefited from traveling our path. This is a process-driven, mindful approach to goal-setting as we become appreciative of the journey, not just the outcome.

This type of thinking is responsible for the old adage, "it's not the summit, but the journey up the mountain that is important."

Dominoes in one form or another have been around for centuries. The name "domino" is derived from the pieces' resemblance to Venetian Carnival masks. These masks were known as domini, which were white with black spots. These masks, in turn, were named because they resembled French priests' winter hoods, which were black on the outside and white on the inside. The name ultimately derives from the Latin word dominus, meaning "lord" or "master."

I will argue that it is not a far stretch to believe and perhaps it is not even coincidence, that when you take responsibility for your life's journeys by establishing your goals and setting up your dominoes, you become the lord and master, the dominus, of your destiny.

Quite frankly I love rainbows and never in my wildest dreams did I ever think that I would choose dominoes over rainbows. However, this really is my choice.

The next articles will focus more on this domino theory, the process, and how to develop your goals in a principle-centered fashion to enhance your sense of spirituality and self-fulfillment.
Stay tuned...

Visualize and Make it Happen!

Vision Boards—the controversy continues.

Published on May 27, 2012 by Neil Farber, M.D, Ph.D. in The Blame Game

I had a vision. My vision was that I would write an article in Psychology Today which would generate a significant amount of controversy.  I made up a vision board which consisted of cut out pictures of people arguing and also people shaking hands in a cooperative setting. I pasted on a copy of the cover from Psychology Today. I had a picture of my computer on there as well. Scattered among the pictures were words like writing, success, and attaining goals. Well, my vision came through, exactly as I dreamt it. My last article on throwing away your vision boards did indeed generate controversy and through the controversy, there was an increase in understanding and the generation of some new friendships; widening my social circle.
So, now that this has come true, do I need to write a retraction to the previous article about throwing away your vision boards. No, I apologize to the believers—I don't believe that my goal achievement had anything to do with putting these things on a board. The article that I wrote before the last one, become an Editor's Pick—an Essential Read. I neglected to say that I also had those words on the present vision board—that I saw this last article also getting that distinction. I also had the number 10,000 written all over the place; referring to me knowing that I was going to get 10,000 views. Well, it did not get picked as an Essential Read and it received less than 2000 views. So, is it a partial success?

Here are the facts as I see them.

1) Even if everything that I had dreamt, wished, or visioned had come true, my success would still be anecdotal. It would have all of the statistical significance of a miracle. Anecdotal at best.

2) I have had many other successes in my life and had no vision board to base them on. I finished medical school and graduate school, received many certifications, honors, distinctions and awards, and even won many competitions. All without the aid of a vision board.

3) I have had vision boards that did not result in success. In fact, when I was publishing my first book, The Blame Game, I created a vision board with the author of the Secret providing an endorsement for the book. It was quite an extensive vision board. I followed all of the recommendations; no negativity, no doubts, visualized it as if it had already happened. I wrote to the author and asked for the endorsement - expressing that I knew that it would happen because I had visualized this. I was told by the administrative office that she did not write any endorsements. I explained that this was impossible because I had visualized that this had already happened. However, it was not to be. So was it my fault because I did something incorrectly, or was it the the vision board just didn't work. Proponents of vision boards would obviously blame me for not doing it well.

4) Some fortune tellers are predicting that Obama will win the election and some are predicting that Romney will win. After the election, there will be some fortune tellers who will turn out to have been correct and some will have been wrong. This does not necessarily mean that the ones who were correct are better at predicting the future, since I could have the same luck by randomly picking one of them. The vision board may have made a difference but it ain't necessarily so.

5) Without sweating (or at least without action steps), visioning has only a minimal advantage over wishing. Even Joyce Schwarz, the Founder of the Vision Board Institute believes that achieving your goals requires more than a typical vision board, it also requires Action. The Vision Board Instittute promotes a system incorporating such things as gratitude, belief, acknowledging, and ACTION into vision boarding. I applaud them for bringing vision boards to the next level.

6) In an interview, Ms. Schwarz stated that the power of the vision board comes from your Reticular Activating System. I agree with this concept. What that means is that the power of the vision board comes from YOU! From your brain and your thoughts. The board is not magical beyond the magic with which you empower it. Thus, whether it is actually on a board or you have figured out another way to wrap your brain around focusing on your goals, it can still work.

7) In the previous article I listed several well-performed, randomized, controlled studies which support the notion that visioning an outcome may be detrimental while visioning a process may be beneficial. I will not repeat too much of the previous article but to give a few examples: college students who visualize doing well in an exam, study less and perform worse than those visualizing how, what, and where they will study. Golfers and tennis pros visualizing training perform better than those visualizing winning. While I was criticized by a proponent of vision boards for my "traditional medicine" approach (I assume this means relying on peer-reviewed, well-performed research), there are several real advantages to visioning a process. It is a mindful approach which keeps us part of the game. It keeps us involved and aware. As Dr. Ellen Langer (Psychology Professor at Harvard) has demonstrated very well, many times, a mindful approach is a healthy approach. Mindfulness is associated with greater satisfaction and a multitude of health and wellness benefits. Focusing on outcome dissociates yourself from the process and even attempts to eliminate the process. Not only will you not enjoy the journey, but you will not benefit from any lessons along the way. Its a lose situation, for even if you are lucky enough to achieve your goal, you will still lose the joy of the journey. It's a "winning the lottery" approach and as many people know, happiness that comes from winning the lottery is transient at best. A mindful approach—visioning the process, the training, the how, is always a winning solution, even if your original goal is not attained.

8) Buyer beware: If you read the comments on my last article, you'll see that there are a number of references which were presented as counter-arguments to my claim about the lack of vision board power. I encourage you to check out these references and make up your own minds about their validity. I have broken down these references into two types. The first are well-controlled, randomized  studies published in peer-reviewed journals which support my contention that envisioning the process has merit. No argument there. But that is not what a traditional vision board does. The second type of reference is anecdotal evidence of peoples' experiences and beliefs. These stories should have no greater impact on you then me telling you that I was able to achieve my goals by always carrying my favorite rabbit's foot with me - call me and I'll tell you where I got it... I also think it may have been in  part due to me pushing my feet into the swamp land down in Florida. Let me know if you want to buy any from me - they're going fast!

9) There are millions of people who practice vision boarding. I have tried searching the literature without success for well-performed, controlled, blinded, peer-reviewed studies which demonstrate a significant improvement in test scores, competitions, goal achievment, success, happiness, subjective well-being, etc. for those creating a vision board focusing only on positive outcomes without an associated action. If anyone can refer me to any such studies, I would be grateful and I would retract some of my comments as appropriate. I do not have a bias against vision boards. I have a bias towards utilizing health and wellness techniques that work.

I also know of no scientific studies which demonstrate the benefit or necessity of actually doing this on a board versus putting it on a recording or writing it in a journal, etc. Any studies?

In contrast to many vision board proponents—I beieve we should focus on the why, how, when, and where you will make it happen. The "what" (the vision) is the first step—not the only step.

As I'm a proponent of action—please take a few moments and write a comment below.

Thanks for following...friend me on facebook for updates on the blog.

Positively,

Neil

Throw Away Your Vision Board

Vision boards are for dreaming, action boards are for achieving.

Published on May 22, 2012 by Neil Farber, M.D, Ph.D. in The Blame Game

Vision or Dream boards have achieved notoriety in the past few years with the release of the book,The Secret. An endorsement from Oprah also didn’t hurt. Vision boards are based on the Law of Attraction. The idea that your mode of thinking directly affects what the universe gives you. If you put positive mental energy into the universe, you’ll be the recipient of positive outcomes. The Law of Attraction is not new. Before The Secret, there was the book, Creative Visualization which described the same phenomenon. As classically taught, the Law of Attraction is universal and as such, always works if you do it correctly. Thus, the reason for any unrealized goals is that you did not provide enough positive thoughts and energy to the process or you let some negative thoughts slip in. In short, you’re completely to blame for your lack of success.
Creating your own vision board is considered the key to success. It is not enough to simply have a positive mental attitude. The secret to achieving your goals is to dream about positive, focused, and specific goals. As The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Vision Boards describes, the images and phrases that make the board should represent your highest priorities. Some posit that a certain amount of time spent in front of the board is necessary for complete success, while others suggest that simply creating the vision board is what is critical to maintain the goal in your subconscious. If you think about your goals as if they've already occurred, then the universe will give this to you.

Here’s my take on Vision Boards.

Cutting out pictures and writing down positive affirmations may be beneficial to some; in particular, helping us organize and more clearly delineate our goals. However, there is good evidence that these actions may also be detrimental.

The evidence:

Experiment #1. (from Pham and Taylor at the Univ of Ca): Three groups of students: Group 1 (Secret group – my label not from the study): students were asked to spend a few moments each day visualizing with a clear image how great it would feel to make a high grade on an important mid-term exam that would take place in a few days time. Group 2: students were asked to spend a few minutes each day visualizing when, where, and how they intended to study. Group 3: control group of students not asked to visualize doing especially well on the exams. Students visualizing being A students (Group 1), studied less and made lower grades on the exam. They felt better about themselves but achieved less. Students visualizing studying, prepared better, studied more, scored higher grades, and were less stressed.

Experiment #2. (Pham and Taylor). A similar studied showed similar results for golfers and tennis players. They were more successful if they imagined themselves training rather than winning.

Experiment #3. (from Oettingen and Wadden at the Univ Penn): A group of obese women in a weight reduction program were asked to imagine how they might behave in various food-related scenarios, such as being tempted with pizza. Their responses were categorized on a scale from highly positive (eg. I would stay away from cake and ice cream) to highly negative (eg. I would be eating both my own and other people’s portions). The women were tracked for a year. Those with more positive fantasies had lost, on average, 26 lbs less than those with negative fantasies.

Experiment #4. (Oettingen): A group of students with a serious crush on a classmate were asked to imagine what would happen in various scenarios, such as arriving early to class and seeing the door open and the object of their desire enter. The degree of their fantasizing was rated as positive (eg Our eyes meet and we both know that this is the type of love that happens once in a lifetime) to negative (we are both free and single, he turns to me, smiles and asks how I am. For reasons that I still do not fully understand, I explain that I already have a boyfriend.) Five months later, those with positive fantasies were less likely to have been forthcoming about their crush or made other overtures toward having a relationship with them.

Experiment #5. (Oettingen). Senior students were asked to note how often they fantasized about getting their dream job after college graduation. Two-year follow-up — the students who had frequently fantasized about success had submitted fewer job applications, received fewer job offers, and had smaller salaries.

Here are some thoughts:

1)    Positive mental attitudes, dreaming, wishing, and fantasizing may, in fact, be harmful.

2)    We are in control of our own thoughts, feelings, actions, and reactions. We have no control over the actions of others.

3)    The universe may have other plans. We don’t know if there are other, greater plans behind the curtain. Thus, not achieving our goals may actually be beneficial for us. The outcome, while apparently negative, may be a blessing in disguise. Rather than blaming yourself, you would be better off finding the silver lining, looking for lessons learned and realizing how this apparent failure can be beneficial.

4)    Two people may have the same vision and only one person can achieve a goal – winning a race or owning a specific house. For the person not achieving the goal, rather than self-blame, time would be better spent looking for reasons for the lack of success, rearranging their dominoes to change course, and moving on to better things. 

5)    According to the Law of Attraction, if you think about and plan for potential obstacles, and your goal is not realized, you will be to blame for including negativity and doubt. If you don’t look at and plan for potential obstacles, you will be unprepared mentally, emotionally, and practically for facing real challenges.

6)    Ideas, thoughts, and dreams are great, but they are forms of energy which do not necessarily lead to action.

7)    It’s easier to think, wish, and dream than to do.

Action vs Dreaming

• "Do it, and then you will feel motivated to do it." - Zig Ziglar
• “Good business leaders create a vision, articulate the vision, passionately own the vision, and relentlessly drive it to completion.” - Jack Welch
• “The secret of getting ahead is getting started.”  - Mark Twain
• “As I grow older I pay less attention to what men say.  I just watch what they do.”  - Andrew Carnegie
• “Everything you want is out there waiting for you to ask. Everything you want also wants you. But you have to take action to get it.” - Jules Renau
• “I never worry about action, but only about inaction.” - Winston Churchill.
• “I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do.” – Leonardo da Vinci
• “Vision without action is a dream. Action without vision is simply passing the time. Action with Vision is making a positive difference.” - Joel Barker

Conclusion: Fantasizing about your perfect world and your perfect life may make you feel better in the short term but will limit your ability to transform your dreams into reality. Convert your vision boards to action boards.

Dream about it, envision how you will realistically do it or get it, and then get off your tush and make it happen.

Next article - steps to create an Action Board.

Feel free to find me on Facebook for links to new articles and to check out some medical mission photos.

Thanks for reading, 

Neil Farber