Positive Intelligence Pt. 1

Written by, Mr. Shirzad Chamine, Positive Intelligence is a book which speaks on the importance of one's PQ (positive intelligence quotient) as a third component to IQ and EQ (emotional intelligence quotient) that should be considered for a person's well-being and life satisfaction. 

What peaked my interest after reading the introduction was how quickly the book relates to a few of other books I have read recently. 

The introduction of the books reads:

"...our own minds sabotage us.

Your mind is your best friend.

But it is also your worst enemy"

I immediately think of book I just finished called, Your Instincts are Killing You by Dr. Marc Schoen. Dr. Schoen provides support for the theory that some of our basic primal instincts are being triggered for situations that are really not a threat to our survival at all. Our minds perceive the situation to be a serious threat and therefore our bodies act accordingly, resulting in a conundrum of problems. 

Mr. Chamine extends on this by saying that not only are we still using our basic primal instincts to react to situations but also because of this we have not fully developed the parts of that...

" ...give us access to our greatest wisdom and insights

[which] have remained weak from years of not

being exercised."

- pg 11 

As a researcher in the field of Cognitive Sciences as well as being a psuedo-spiritual person, I enjoy these type of books (clearly). I never get a sense of repetition. If anything, it's a sense of confirmation. 

My research does not directly relate to the claims in this book but I could see how all of this is possible from my standpoint. I work in a lab that specifically deals with memory and decision-making. So from my standpoint, none of this is all that far-fetched. I mean, we plant false memories in peoples' heads all the time, so nothing is impossible to me. Moving on. 

At the end of each chapter, Mr Chamine provides a question for 'Inquiry.' When I hear the word 'inquiry' I automatically think of pretty much any book written by Ms. Byron Katie. Her whole premise is to inquire thoughts to see if they are actually true. Interesting to see a book make this connection from an entirely different angle. 

In Chapter 2, Mr. Chamine talks about the different 'Saboteurs' in the mind that can stunt our potential. He describes these saboteurs as the following:

"The Saboteurs are the internal enemies. They are a set of 

automatic and habitual mind patterns, each with its own voice,

beliefs and assumptions that work against your best interest."

- pg. 16

This is funny. Because my lab focuses on memory, we deal a lot with the inter-workings of the conscious vs subconscious mind. We use words like heuristics, schemas, biases, and habits to describe short cuts that the brain makes (usually  subconsciously) so that we are able to function optimally (in theory) in our world. 

To some degree I understand how these 'sabotaging monsters' could be created in relation to the type of research that I do. I also understand how if you are not aware of this possibility it could be near impossible to do anything about it. The sabotaging is something that would occur subconsciously.

Mr. Chamine lists a total of 10 saboteurs in the mind. Two of them stick out to me; the Judge and the Victim. 'The Judge' is described as one that "constantly find faults with yourself, others and your conditions and circumstances." The Victim is described as wanting you "to feel emotional and temperamental as a way of gaining attention and affection.'"

Both of these terms came up in another book I recently finished called, The Fifth Agreement by don Miguel Ruiz and done Jose Ruiz (a follow-up to The Four Agreements).

The Fifth Agreement gives nearly identical definitions about The Judge and The Victim, but from a completely differently point of view (the Toltec belief system). Like I said, I do not read this as repetition, but as confirmation. Hearing people from different walks of life and beliefs systems come up with the same conclusion is always fascinating to me. Being able to apply my line of work to it, is only that much more fun. 

Looking forward to continuing my read.

Sidenote: In case you haven't noticed, I can't read one book at a time. I currently have 12 books checked out the library. All of them have been started.

Be lovely.

Laney

I Need Your Love - Is that True? Pt. 1

Written by Ms. Bryon Katie (I am so into the first name), this book explores the concept of needing other peoples' love, approval and appreciation to find fulfillment in life. 

This is not the first book I have read by Ms. Katie (I have a thing about using honorifics for pretty much.. everyone. I blame it on my mother whom gave me scary looks anytime I forget to preface a name with the appropriate Mrs. or Mr. Good times). I read her first book Loving What Is a few months ago. It was a tough read for me to process simple because I was not quite sure whether I agreed or not with a technique she calls "The Work." In a nut shell, "The Work" is a way of inquiring our own thoughts basically with the goal of finding our own inner peace. Long story short, I realized I do like the book. I would even recommend the book. However, the book is not for everyone. There were many times I was angry and vowed to stop reading the book all together. 

So I am now reading her second book, I Need Your Love - Is That True?, for the second time and getting some thoughts on paper (post?) as I go. 

First quote that sticks out to me:

"If you're afraid to be alone, 

it means you're afraid of your thoughts"

- pg 11-12

This is interesting to me for a couple of reasons. As mentioned, most of Ms. Katie's books center around our thoughts and the ways our thoughts take us out of a state of peace we would otherwise be in (in theory... or reality... whichever you choose to believe).

Now this quote popped out to me because I once had a friend who called me saying that her friend literally could not stand to be alone. Not just alone, as in single, but alone as in by herself. If she was alone for too long she would cry the whole time.

I realize this is her truth. I am no one to judge what a person does or does not do in their alone time. But that was the first time I had heard something like that. 

Interestingly enough, I once read one of Deepak Chopa's books (I'm a slightly pseudo-spiritual person..ish) that challenged the reader to engage in an hour of silence while remaining thoughtless. My intial thought was... that's impossible - which became the exact reason I had to do it.

The first 20 minutes... pure torture. Every thought of what I should and could be doing flooded my mind. Once I broke the 30 minute mark, I guess my mind and body realized there was no point in making me feel bad about my idleness. I still had thoughts, but it turned more into daydream-like thoughts. I'd catch myself and attempt to go back into my state of thoughtlessness.

It was pretty cool once I was done (mostly because I was jazzed about overcoming 'the impossible.' I tend to be a pretty unplugged person; no facebook, no twitter, no instagram, terrible texter, basic cable (that I barely watch), and most of my internet time is spent... here. Taking a moment to really 'unplug' felt refreshing.

I realized how living in the world we live in could lead to a lot of "I should be doing this.." type thoughts which tends to only cause discomfort (or what my field would call cognitive dissonance in various degrees). I guess the silence and the unplugged life gives me my form of balance in the world.

Ms. Katie goes on to write:

"If you're fearful, if you crave safety and security, your thoughts

may tell you that love will rescue you...

There is another way to respond to a thought, 

and that is to question it."

The last line is the essence of Ms. Katie's writing - to question every thought we have. I dig the idea. I guess that why I am writing about it. I guess everyone has that moment where they go on a quest for inner peace or something like that. Ha. 

Let me get out of here. 

Be lovely.

Laney