Inspired Articles

Let's dive into the intriguing world of beliefs, shall we?

You see, beliefs are like those patterns of connections between the neurons in our brain, and it's a pretty wild ride up there. Your brain is a bit of a chaotic place; your neurons are constantly making and breaking connections. Every experience, thought, feeling, and activity you have is etching patterns into the neural pathways of your brain. It's like the ultimate brain graffiti gallery, and these patterns are what we call beliefs.

But here's the kicker: although we often express our beliefs in words, that's not how they're wired into our nervous system. Think about babies for a moment. Before they can even talk, they're already out there exploring the world, pushing, pulling, dropping, banging, and chewing on stuff. These little explorers are building their beliefs about how things work without saying a single word. So, trying to dig up disempowering beliefs through mental archaeology might be a bit futile.

Now, let's get into the nitty-gritty. What turns an idea into a full-blown belief? It's all about certainty. The more certain you are about something, the stronger that belief becomes. At the lowest level of certainty, beliefs are just opinions, and opinions, as any politician will tell you, can change as easily as the weather. But when you've got an unshakable conviction about something, it's like your life's purpose, and it takes a cosmic event to change it. Think St. Paul's conversion on the road to Damascus level of cosmic.

Now, where does that certainty come from? Well, it's all about reference experiences. These are like the building blocks of your beliefs, and they often come from the people around you, especially during your early years. Yep, your parents had a big say in what you believe. When you were a kid, you soaked up their wisdom like a sponge, and critical thinking wasn't exactly your strong suit. This could lead to some interesting contradictions, like thinking that killing someone is wrong while also believing that defending your country through violence is right. The human mind is a curious place!

But here's the twist: when those beliefs come from someone you consider an authority figure, they can create a feedback loop. Let's say you have two equally bright pupils, and a teacher they both respect gives one a gold star for spelling and tells the other they're a spelling disaster. How does that affect their future behaviour? Well, the "good speller" will keep pushing to get better because they see themselves as good at it. The "poor speller," on the other hand, might avoid spelling like the plague because they think they're just naturally bad at it. The teacher's judgment becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, all because the students took it as a judgment of their innate abilities rather than their current skills.

Kids are pretty receptive to what their parents say until they hit around 5 to 7 years old. After that, they start questioning things more, offering alternative hypotheses, and showing off their argumentative skills. It's all part of their insatiable hunger for knowledge. They're like tiny scientists exploring the mysteries of the universe.

As we grow older, our reference experiences come from a wider range of sources – friends, teachers, books, and the media. Life experiences also play a huge role. Get bitten by a dog, and you don't need anyone else to tell you that dogs can be dangerous. Even our education system chips in, categorizing kids as "smart" or "dumb" based on exam results. It's like planting beliefs in their minds.

So, beliefs are like the building blocks of our reality, shaped by our experiences and the people around us. They can be as solid as a rock or as fluid as a river, but understanding where they come from is the first step to exploring the vast landscape of your own beliefs. 🧠🌟