For some of our most important beliefs, we have no evidence at all, except that people we love and trust hold these beliefs. Considering how little we know, the confidence we have in our beliefs is preposterous—and it is also essential.”-A Grayling
I decided to embark upon this journey of beliefs and what does it mean to believe because it is such a personal topic. Regardless of who you are, you believe in something and those beliefs are meaningful. People across the world had fought and died to preserve their beliefs. While others proselytize their beliefs with the belief that they are helping others.
I was born in Leon County in Tallahassee, Florida. I can’t tell you how odd it is to know that the place I was born remains named by Ponce de Leon. A French explorer (pilgrim) who killed thousands of Native Americans who would not convert their beliefs to Christianity.
"Your beliefs are a subset of your culture; your culture is formulated by your social group closest to you, and you are socialized into a lot of your beliefs."-Deltom
This makes me think back on a time when I was in middle school and I tried to convert my best friend, who was raised Muslim, to Christianity because I wanted so bad to know that she would be joining me in heaven. Thankfully, this person is still my best friend of 25 years. Knowing what I know now, that was a conversation that could have divided us. Did I really believe my friend wasn’t going to heaven because she wasn’t a Christian? Or, was I driven to my beliefs by the rhetoric imposed on me every Sunday or by the rumblings of my Christian friends and family?
I don't think that in every instance, what you believe is what your outcome is going to be because there's always circumstances beyond your beliefs that you can't control.-Deltom
Then, there’s the Placebo Affect. The notion that As He Thinketh, So is He (a book by James Allen). This notion that your thoughts determine your outcome has some truth to it but does not apply to every situation.
First, allow me to point out that this book title was derived from a verse in the Bible, “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee”-Proverbs 23:7. Contrary to popular belief, this phrase has nothing to do with determining outcomes by altering thoughts. It’s about further investigating someone who appears to be caring but has poor intent…but I digress.
Yes, it is important to remain positive and frame your perspective from a positive lens because you will respond to the situation in a positive manner. For example, if you were to loose your hair and then tell yourself, “I am hopeful my hair will grow back and I will be okay either way,” you are speaking positivity into your existence which will likely result in you engaging in some type of problem solving action (e.g., consultation with your doctor, buying a wig, taking supplements to help with hair growth). Now let’s take the same scenario and you tell yourself, “My hair will grow back” and you take the problem solving measures but your hair does not grow back. You may began to experience negative feelings because you believed you could change your outcome simply with your mindset. However, the problem is outside of what you are able to control.
"Your beliefs are tied to your identity, and they are tied to your morality. That is something that we cherish and we hold on to."-Deltom
All of this to say that I belief it is important to question our beliefs and be open to the perspective of others and their beliefs. Exploration does not make our believe any weaker nor is an alternative belief a threat to who we are as individuals. The goal is to evolve and understand that much of what we know is based off of what we have been socialized to belief. Hence, if your social group were to change or if your were to adapt different cultural practices in to your daily existence, then your believes will change as well. There’s nothing nefarious about change rather than it is the fear of change that causes us to behave nefariously.-Deltom
Mentioned in the Episode:
Grayling, A. Psychology: How we form beliefs. Nature 474, 446–447 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/474446a
The Role of Beliefs in Goal Setting
https://www.columbiatribune.com/story/business/2020/12/24/role-beliefs-goal-setting/4039090001/
As a Man Thinketh: goodreads.com/book/show/81959.As_a_Man_Thinketh?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=AijuKMOTKU&rank=1
List of cognitive biases: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cognitive_biases
How to modify persisting negative expectations in major depression? An experimental study comparing three strategies to inhibit cognitive immunization against novel positive experiences: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30870773/