Why You Do What You Do

I have often wondered what it was that caused me to not do what I said I wanted to do or to stay in patterns that were not congruent with what I wanted at the deepest levels of my being. Consciousness Shifting came out of this introspection and reflection and was a direct result of asking that question. nnOne of the things we have learned in working with clients is that there is a significant amount of programming that drives behaviors and actions. This programming or coding has nothing to do with who you are and everything to do with why you may not have what you want.nnYou have been and continue to be coded by a variety of influences. I like to think of coding as the unconscious beliefs and thoughts we have taken on that we are unaware of. These thoughts and beliefs often limit our experience of life and our self expression. nnEvery experience you have in your life lives as an energy pattern creating resonance or dis-resonance with your goals and dreams. These patterns come to us and become part of us in the following ways:nnMarketing: The messages you receive from commercials and print media impart various unconscious beliefs that you then become resonant with. The idea that drugs will help you to live a good life, or that if you are not experiencing what is portrayed on the tube or in print advertising, then something is missing. Coding is about being externally referenced, meaning that you are defined and made whole and ok by things, people and events outside of you. nnParental and societal modeling and programming: This comes as the effect of living on this planet and modeling what we see in the culture as well as entraining to the expectations of “proper behavior”nnEducational and religious indoctrination: From a very early age we are rewarded for doing well in school and programmed to the religious beliefs of our families. This indoctrination creates a framework for how we are in the world.nnCultural coding: This particular form of programming has to do with the environments and cultures we grew up in and the spoken and unspoken codes of conduct within them.nnA fascinating book, The Culture Code, by Dr. Clotaire Rapaille speaks to some of these principles. Dr. Rapaille was able to help Nestle both introduce coffee to the Japanese culture and create a code in Japan for coffee. He did this by systematically programming the Japanese culture to embrace coffee. It happened over a period of years; the result? …from 0 - 1/2 Billion pounds in sales in 30 years!nnCoding occurs at the survival level, at the level of the reptilian brain. Dr. Rapaille states in his books and interviews, "the reptilian always wins!"nnConsider this quote taken from his website where the 3 brain model is being described. Everybody has three brains: The reptilian brain, the limbic brain and the cortex. The reptilian brain deals with instincts. We have no control of this part as it deals with our basic survival. This is the part we’re trying to tap into during our discoveries. Once you have discovered the "reptilian hot button" associated with a product or concept, you cannot lose! The limbic brain acts as both a gateway to emotions and a filter for memory. The logic of emotion imprinted in this part of the brain is what "attaches significance" to the information processed. This is the Cultural Archetype decoding center of the brain. The cortex is associated with intelligence. The strongly imprinted code, imprinted earlier in the limbic, cannot be overridden easily by the cortex.nnThe fact that the imprinting can’t be overridden easily by the cortex is demonstrated every year when New Year’s resolutions are made and broken a short time later. This is also evidenced when we intend to change something in our lives and find that our patterns of reactivity interfere with that intention. When you look at the research Dr. Rapaille has done on cultural coding the reasons for this difficulty become more apparent.nnMore from Dr. Rapaille’s website: "This collective cultural unconscious can be further defined as a pool of shared imprinting experiences that unconsciously pre-organize and influence the behavior of a culture." You and I have been programmed from our earliest experiences and this programming can hold us in patterns of immobility. The programming comes from the collective and also from your parents, teachers, society, advertising and life learning experiences. It comes from the unconscious belief of not being good enough and from the basic fear of change. nnWhat does this have to do with creating the life you most desire? What does this have to do with how you are in the world? nnUntil you move beyond the conditioning and beliefs of the cultural collective you cannot create things to be as you desire them to be. You must move beyond the stories of the past and the significance you’ve given to them if you want to embrace your best life.nnI remember working with a client now in her early 50s, who at the age of 25 had what was then called a nervous breakdown related to the fear of being bombed. This fear came from the programming she received as a child when participating in air raid drills during which she and her classmates were instructed to sit in the hall of the school with their heads between their knees. I wonder how many of us still carry resonance as she did with the fear of being bombed.nnWhile reading The Culture Code, I was fascinated to find that Americans have no cultural belief in perfection or that life could be perfect! Perfection is in the essence of every moment when we choose to be present to what is and embrace the idea that "now is new." nnFortunately, the powerful process of Consciousness Shifting can separate the emotional imprint and the associated significance we have attached to it. nnWe can erase permanently the fears that drive our behaviors and limiting beliefs effectively neutralizing the charge. We can erase cellular memory of traumatic events that often lead to mistrust of ourselves and others. We can teach trust and flow. We can move from the fear and the limitations we have taken on that have nothing to do with who we are, to the place of embracing the essence of who we really are. The end result – peace, happiness and joy!