In the course of pursuing my Master’s in Psychology, I took a course in Cognitive Psychology. In this course I found great enjoyment. One of the requirements textbooks was The Invisible Gorilla, by Christopher Chabris and Daniel Simons. The focus of the novel is to address how our intuitions deceive us. The areas discussed are the illusions of attention, memory, confidence, knowledge, cause and potential. Many times we believe that what we see in front of us is actual truth. However, this novel explains that what we think and what we see is not always true. For example, with the illusion of memory you may remember a time from your early childhood of playing with toys. You may remember the color, size and shape and have the capability to talk about the toy in a vivid way. The reality is, over time your thoughts can refigure the actual description of the toy. This idea helped me to really take a look at what appears in front of me in an objection way. I realize that there is multiple ways one’s memory can replay old memories.
Throughout the journey of change you have to consistently evaluate how you view your thoughts, which in result; simulates action and behaviors. For example, if you are involved in a confrontation with someone and your response is normally aggressive, I encourage you to address this situation with a different attitude. I suggest to first remain calm and in control of your feelings, with doing this you can develope a resolution that is agreed upon by both parties. At times, this will be difficult but with a conscious effort and practice it will become easier. Are you willing to deal with the good and bad about yourself to fully understand yourself?
By reading, The invisible Gorilla, it can help you with understanding how your illusions can present a false reality in your thoughts. To help you further understand how the mind works there is an added YouTube link about the Monkey Business illusion by Daniel Simons.
YouTube video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGQmdoK_ZfY
Thought of the day:
“Reality is easy, it’s deception that is hard work.” -Lauryn Hill
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