Power Tool: Conscious vs. Subconscious Thought

A Coaching Power Tool Created by Paula Maddox
(Executive Coach, UNITED STATES)

Whatever a man thinketh, so is he.

The subconscious mind can process 4 million bits of info per second and impulses that travel at a speed of up to 100,000 mph; whereas, the conscious mind can only process 40 bits of info per second and impulses that travel at a speed of up to 100-150 mph.

We can only teach what we know and we can only produce what we are. Like only produces like. For example, an apple can only reproduce an apple and not an orange. Sheep can only reproduce a lamb and not a calf. What are we reproducing when we share our thoughts and words?

We must ask ourselves, if we have the courage to think beyond our present condition? Words are just as powerful, because they produce thoughts and thoughts are powerful. Our mind is the residence for our thought life; therefore the scenes we rehearse in our conscious mind play out on the stage of our lives. In reality, it is our thoughts that cause conditions to be created.

Researchers put it another way. Our thoughts are the seeds we plant in the sacred soil of our subconscious mind. They are the mental blueprints that control, direct and govern our lives; ideas that beautify, enrich and make our life meaningful. The question is, what type of seeds are we planting in our soil?

We often think of corporations as a building or physical entity; however, if a Fortune 500 company relocates to a new city or a new building, it’s still a Fortune 500 company. Therefore, a corporation is not a building, a property or a product…it is a thought! That is why corporations can continue to grow and thrive long after the CEO and other executives resign or leave.

When thoughts cease to exist, ideas stop, economies stop and growth stops. We often hear that we are no better than the thoughts we think. What is influencing our thinking? Is it something that encourages our growth or are we feeding toxic thoughts into our minds that may contaminate our thinking? What are we ingesting from your environment? How do the people in our network think? Do they contribute to our growth?

What is a conscious thought?

We often hear that we are what we think and we are no better than our thoughts. If this is true, we must evaluate the type of mental diet we are feeding our minds. Our mind is our most precious resource. Our mind is also the control center or mainframe of our life. The conscious mind specializes in figuring out how things are performed. It’s the rational side of our mind. Our conscious mind will use or even waste time to figure out something for its own sake. In other words, the conscious mind is responsible for logic and reasoning. It also controls all the actions that we do on intention while being conscious.

What is a sub-conscious thought?

The subconscious is the part of the mind that instantly and readily draws upon our habits and skills. The subconscious totally disregards the “how” and instead focuses on the first thing it knows to work, regardless of whether or not it is the best choice. Researchers often refer to the subconscious mind as the beast with a huge appetite; therefore we must be aware of what we are feeding it. If we feed it good things then it will have nothing bad to draw upon.

It has also been proven that our subconscious mind will continue to do things even, if such things are clearly no benefit to us and even if they damage us. In addition, our subconscious thoughts are responsible for all of our involuntary actions. Our breathing rate, emotions and heartbeats are controlled by our subconscious mind. It is also the area of our mind where beliefs and memories are stored.

We definitely want the subconscious mind on our side. If the subconscious is not aligned with our conscious goals, we usually find ourselves stagnated. So why would the subconscious mind not be aligned with our conscious goals? The subconscious mind primarily develops between birth and the age of 6 or 7. At this time, it is a sponge, accepting whatever programming it is receiving from our environment in the form of experiences, attitudes, values and beliefs. Therefore, it’s wise to watch our thoughts, because they reveal to us what our beliefs are about our environment, and ourselves but just noticing them in a conscious process doesn’t make that change. We must take extensive steps to re-program our thoughts through years of training, workshops, reading self-help books, psychological counseling, etc.

Studies conducted in the seventies show that our brains begin to prepare for action just over a third of a second before we consciously decide to act. In other words, even when we ‘think’ we are conscious, it is our subconscious mind, which is actually making our decisions for us. Neuroscientists have also proven that our subconscious mind is running us on it’s automatic pilot mode, 95% of the time and our conscious mind provides 5% or less of our cognitive activity during the day.

Negating negative thoughts

Someone is always somewhere thinking negative thoughts about us, but that should not matter. Eckhart Tolle says it best,

what other people think about us is none of our business.

Why should it be? Why waste our time and energy trying to change how others think about us? Can we say that we really have the time to be a steward over someone else’s thoughts about us? When we validate the thoughts of others, we are giving them our personal power, whether they are wrong or right. It is far more important to determine how we feel about ourselves. The only real problem we have is how we are using our minds.

Empowering positive thoughts

Henry Ford said,

if you think you can, or if you think you can’t, you’re right.

With one thought, our latter days can be better than our former days. One thought can transform us from who we were to who we can become.

Molecular biologists at Stanford University have conducted research that shows that if we interpret things in a positive way, we start living healthier and better quality lives. A new attitude, positive or negative, sends new messages to the cells in our body that can actually reprogram our health and behavior. It can even change cellular structure, turning diseased cells into healthy cells. Their research also indicates that our conscious mind can think freely and create new ideas ‘out of the box’ and the subconscious mind is basically a super computer loaded with a database of programmed behaviors, mostly which we acquired before we reached the age of six.

Let’s face it; we are a product of our choices. Whatever we think actually controls us. In addition, out of our thoughts comes our self-perception. A thought is a process or action of thinking. If we think wrong, we go wrong. If we think down, we go down. If we think you can’t accomplish something, we probably can’t.

Coaching Application

Here are several questions coaches can consider asking clients to bring them to a new level of conscious awareness:

• Which thoughts honor the person, who you are?
• Which thoughts align with your underlying beliefs?
• Which thoughts originate from a contaminated environment or toxic situation?
• Who and what are you allowing to pour thoughts into your mind?
• What threat does this person or situation represent to you?
• There is nothing that you can do to change the present moment. It simply is. What are you rejecting in the here and now?
• What are you trying to change in the outside world instead of doing the inner work to change your response to it?
• What steps can you take to change your way of thinking, which will also change your perspective?

Reflection

Our thoughts should reflect the highest and best representation of who we are. Therefore, we should take the time to determine how our words and thoughts represent us to others. It is often said that a troubled conscience respects no one. Are we fostering a troubled conscience?

If we desire to silence the white noise in our mind and gain clarity with our thoughts, we must calm the clamor of our own thoughts. Get quiet. Try meditation. Center ourselves and seek peace. Eliminate anything and anyone, who robs us of our peace. Peace can be found in the quietness within us. When we sow a thought…we reap an action.

When we sow an action…we reap a habit. When we sow a habit…we reap character. When we sow character…we reap our destiny!

• Start each day with a strategy, purpose & meditation.
• Getting a new mind means gaining a new perspective. A new perspective is a new way of looking at our situation.
• It’s okay to be who you are. You are enough.
• You accept what is.
• Continually seek sound counsel & guidance.
• Have an optimistic thought in the midst of adversity.
• Accept the fact that you are the master of your life.
• Tell yourself that you don’t need outside acceptance.
• Unseen thoughts reap visible consequences. It all comes from your thinking.