Relation Between Subconscious Mind And Self-Confidence

We use our conscious mind to process the things we see and feel. It is with our conscious mind that we make our decisions. In turn the conscious mind also reacts to the outcome of such decision. Our conscious mind is only part of how we think and decide.

A greater part of our thinking process is affected by our subconscious mind. This is proven in many studies.

Our subconscious mind takes past life experiences, rooting back as far as childhood, to respond to a present situation. It doesn’t have the ability to cognitively distinguish or process thoughts, but it can bring about some sort of memory, whether good or bad, which may affect our judgement of a situation.

In a manner of speaking, the subconscious mind, while less cognitive, is much more powerful than the conscious mind. It actually takes up 80% of our psychology. And it can lead to precarious circumstances.

When we say: “I would like to have a cup of coffee” — that is our conscious mind thinking and deciding our moves for us. When we say: “I’m not sure if it’s good for me to have a cup of coffee, when I need to be asleep in thirty minutes” — that is our conscious mind debating with our subconscious.

In this scenario, the outcome could be less than ideal that we may end up suffering from our decisions. We could actually be staying up all night because we did drink the coffee. And this is just a simple situation. Some bigger decisions may have a more stringent outcome. And it can put us in a place where we may have to regret later.

The subconscious mind is rooted in childhood. It is common for many people to have experiences in childhood which have been rather bad. Things like an abuse, a painful divorce, a traumatic accident, which we may have consciously forgotten as we grow older, all seep through our subconscious and in effect, lead to some ill-feeling that will render in our decisions later on as an adult. This is what people term as habitual thinking, which is about making decisions based on established norms or thoughts which are not necessarily sound, but is already mapped out in our psyche.

Habitual thinking can stop us from making good decisions, often leading to consequences we do not welcome; consequences that may lead to our own pain, suffering and regret. In a grander scope, habitual thinking can bring about feelings of inadequacy, unworthiness, insecurity lowered morale and self-confidence. In a way, it can imprison us from moving forward. Thus, even if we want to make things better for ourselves, we are left powerless because of it.

We find less confidence in talking to prospective clients, in business for example, because at the back of our minds we may have already formed that idea that we cannot effectively close a deal. We could be less enthusiastic at the prospect of meeting people or speaking in a crowd, maybe because at one point in our young life, we were witness to a situation that has traumatized us from doing so and this has been planted in our subconscious. We may handle failure differently because of these situations.

Fortunately, there is a way to overcome this.

Many people have struggled with feelings of inadequacy and confidence problems before. But they have successfully found a way to eliminate these problems, removing the negative habits and going against what is rooted in their minds. The following have been adapted by people in order to overcome psychological problems that may affect their feelings of themselves:

• Some go to therapy and counselling. They help by employing tried and tested methods that would help eliminate these feelings through a series of sessions with a qualified psychologist or counsellor.
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• Some read self-help books or media or attend seminars touching on the subject.
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• Some discuss the problem with friends and loved-ones who can provide sympathetic guidance.
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• Some attend self-help programs, or self-improvement programs that boost self-confidence or help channel negative energy into positive ones.

Motivation plays a big role in overcoming the effects of our subconscious to our whole attitude. It is our motivation, that which comes from within us, which can address and overcome these feelings of rejection or failure.