Self-Help Stuff That Works Home About me Explore this site Immediate relief of negative feelings Making changes stick Share your favorite principle About the book: Self-Help Stuff That Works back to relationships community send this page to a friend advertisement

advertisement Blind Spots COVER YOUR LEFT EYE, put your face close to the screen, and look at the X. As you slowly pull your face away from the screen, at some point the 0 will disappear. Or cover your right eye and look at the 0, and pull away, and the X will disappear.  X                      0 You have a blind spot in each eye where the bundles of nerve fibers go back into your brain. But notice something: You don’t see the blind spot. It doesn’t show up like a dark, empty spot. Your brain fills in the emptiness. In a similar way, when there is information you don’t know, your brain fills it in, giving you the feeling that nothing is missing. In other words, when you feel certain, it doesn’t really mean much. Your feeling of certainty doesn’t necessarily have any relationship to your actual correctness or knowledge. Your brain produces a feeling of certainty at the drop of a hat because it’s wired up to do so. All human brains tend to jump to conclusions and then feel certain about those conclusions, so it pays to be somewhat skeptical of your own mind. That may seem like a negative goal, but it isn’t. Feeling certain has caused more problems for people than skepticism ever did. For example, when you’re arguing with your spouse, the thing that keeps the anger intense is that you’re both certain you’re right. If each of you had a little more skepticism about your own ability to remember and reason, it would be easier to work out your differences. To take another example, depressed people would get depressed less often if they became more skeptical of the pessimistic assumptions they make. The feeling of certainty depressed people have about their own pessimistic view of the world does them harm. Don’t place much importance in your feelings of certainty. Be skeptical. Recognize you have blind spots and act accordingly. You’ll be saner if you do. Be skeptical of your feelings of certainty. Have you been discouraged from pursuing your goal by a parent, a teacher, a well-meaning expert? Check this out: Sometimes You Shouldn't Listen Are you pursuing a purpose and sometimes get discouraged when you hit a setback or when it seems difficult? Here is a way to get back your spirit: Optimism Here's a longer, more conversational chapter on optimism from a future book: Conversation on Optimism If worry is a problem for you, or even if you would like to simply worry less even though you don't worry that much, you might like to read this: The Ocelot Blues Learn how to prevent yourself from falling into the common traps we are all prone to because of the structure of the human brain: Thoughtical Illusions Would you like to stand as a pillar of strength during difficult times? There is a way. It takes some discipline but it is very simple. Pillar of Strength top advertisement   table of contents | immediate relief of negative feelings | making changes stick share your favorite principle | my book |

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