Recognizing things that influence us
@Awen_Eldorath (107)
United States
March 26, 2011 5:00am CST
We are constantly bombarded with bits of information in fractions of a second all day, every day. For the most part, we are not consciously aware of many of these bits because they barely make a "blip" in our sensory memory and do not arouse our attention long enough to be retained for more than a few moments at most. Other times we react to the influences those bits of information provoke within us, without thinking about our motivations.
It is only natural and human for us to be inclined towards associating with external influences/stimuli. In other words, some part of us is inclined to cling to, desire, grasp at, avoid, or ignore the influence of external stimuli. While most of this process seems to happen beyond the realm of conscious awareness, we can nonetheless have a general objective recognition of them that can be useful in making a more informed and intentional choice of acting instead of reacting, or of allowing the influence to rise and subside without taking action in the awareness that sometimes doing nothing is the best action to take.
Think about these processes in your own life--When you percieve outward influences, do you recognize the inner processes that are inclined to associate with them?
Are you acting according to your own inner processes, or are you merely reacting to external influences?
3 responses
@celticeagle (158958)
• Boise, Idaho
26 Mar 11
I think that sometimes I am acting according to my own inner processes,but, much of the time I react to external influences. I am a highly emotional person. I am also a depressed personality being diagnosed with severe depression with panic attacks. If I get very bad I can't use my inner processes to bring me out of it and go down to the depths of darkness and dispare. I get very emotional and go through a panic attack. But if I don't go down too quickly then I am able to keep a handle on it and talk myself back out of it. It depends on the outer influence and how severe it 'attacks' me.
@celticeagle (158958)
• Boise, Idaho
27 Mar 11
I think that alot of people get nervous around emotional people because they are uncomfortable and not know how to react. That's why I am not around people much. My daughter is bi-polar so I can relate.
@katie0 (5203)
• Japan
27 Mar 11
Before I watched the movie 'The Secret' I thought others were responsible for what happened in my life, I felt so lost like I had no control of my destiny, it was really lonely even beliveing in God. I was always reacting.
Now I don't blame nobody, not even my parents, it's up to each person to control their desitny, someone can sure make me angry but I allowed that, I can feel the way I want not because someone made me but because I have not controlled how I feel, we have to build a shield cause it's never people's fault. I think it's so admirable those people who are so calm that things outside hardly get to them, wise people, most of the times elderly, they are amazing.
