Often, the brain, our closest assistant, turns into the main critic. It reminds us of past failures, distrusts everything new, and thinks in old patterns that hinder success. But the good news is that it can be "tricked" gently and environmentally by resetting it to achieve goals.
Results can be achieved through hypnosis and working with the subconscious. How to do this? Let's break it down with neuro-coach and hypnotherapist Maxim Sergeyev.
"Tricking" the Brain: How Does It Work?
Your brain is the most advanced reality simulator in the world. It struggles to distinguish between events that happen in reality and those that you vividly imagine inside yourself. Remember a dream: while you are asleep, it feels absolutely real to you. You feel joy, fear, surprise. And the brain is fully engaged in this. Simply put, for your brain, a vivid, detailed thought or image is almost equivalent to a real event.
If you can create a convincing experience of success in your imagination, the brain will perceive it as real and begin to rely on it. It will build new "pathways" — neural connections that will help you act differently in real life.
What Ways to "Trick" the Brain Exist
1. Visualization
The task is not just to imagine but to create a full-fledged movie where you are the main character achieving your goal.
Imagine the desired outcome. Engage all your senses. Don’t just visualize the end result; enhance the image/situation with additional properties: sounds, colors, emotions, hues. The more detailed the picture, the better.
Anchor it with emotions. The most important thing is to feel joy, pride, gratitude, and relief from the achieved success. It is these emotions that tell the brain: "This is truly important! Remember this!"
2. Affirmations
These are short positive statements. For them to work, they need to be delivered to the brain bypassing the inner critic:
Record affirmations in your voice. Dictate phrases like: "I am confident in myself," "I easily find the best solutions," "My actions lead to success" onto a voice recorder. Your brain perceives your voice with greater trust.
Listen to them at the threshold of sleep. Play the recording right after waking up or before going to sleep. At these moments, the brain is relaxed and most receptive. Critical thinking is asleep, and the suggestions go straight into the subconscious.
3. Self-hypnosis
This is the ability to intentionally enter a state of calm and focus, where the inner critic's voice quiets down. How to do this?
Start with breathing. Just focus on slow, deep inhalations and exhalations. This already calms the nervous system.
Use your body. Physical activity is a great way to turn off the inner dialogue. After sports or yoga, energy levels are high, and the brain stops conserving energy and worrying. The critic calms down, giving way to calm confidence.
Be "here and now." The inner critic lives in the past ("it didn’t work last time") or in the future ("what if I fail"). When you are fully in the present moment, feeling your breath, sensations in your body, the critic has nothing to latch onto.
4. Confirming Action — the Most Powerful Trick
The most convincing way to "trick" the brain is to provide it with undeniable evidence. First, you create the mindset "I can" in your head, and then immediately reinforce it with a small but real action.
Programming confidence for public speaking? Sign up for the nearest free webinar and ask a question in the chat. Visualized a successful job interview? Send your resume to your dream company.
5. Face Your Fear Head-On
Often, our fears stem from childhood. The brain still believes they are relevant, even though you have long grown up and become stronger. The most direct way to dispel this illusion is to test it in reality.
Summon your will and take a small step towards your fear. Afraid of meeting new people? Ask a stranger on the street for the time. Afraid of looking foolish? Publicly admit to a small lack of knowledge. By doing this, you are not tricking your brain. On the contrary, you are providing it with objective data: "Look, there is no danger. We managed. We have become stronger." This breaks the old illusion.
What’s the Conclusion
Our brain is a flexible system. By using these techniques, you are literally "trampling" new paths in it that lead to success. Over time, these paths will become wide and easily passable. There is no need to fight with your consciousness. Learn to negotiate with it and gently guide it in the right direction. Success is not a coincidence, but the result of the right internal setting.
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