Thoughts of a Mad Man

Emotional Control: Be careful with this one.

So there are thousands of angles when working with the mind. The few that I remember are offered in the hope that they will spark something of value.


This isn't some Great Old Tradition, it is science, and I mean science you're doing--testing and collecting knowledge. If a recipe works, then it gets added to the collection; if not it gets retooled or even scrapped. We're just adjusting and exploring.


The next bit of value is something that slightly misfired in my hands. I've had a lot of those. The technique worked but in a way that was kind of unexpected. I've had self hypnosis do hilarious things--attempting to stop drinking soda I instead found myself peeling the label off my bottle.


The following technique came from Burt Goldman, self styled, "the American Monk." But it is based in the psychology of priming.


A simple example of priming is to repeat the word red to yourself ten times, then look at a picture. All of the red images jump out at you. Then I take the picture away and ask you if there were any blue images. You probably don't think there were, but when you look at the picture again you see them.


This is a very simplistic view of priming, but it illustrates the way that we can control our experience. Our own mind highlights the things it thinks we want and need. Things that match what we're paying attention to, and that match what we've experienced.


So Burt Goldman's idea was to prime oneself with a one-word mantra. Just like Red, only you would use a word that connected with what you want. I felt depressed: enervated, burdened, sluggish. So I looked for something that would fit any situation and stimulate me. The word I came up with was "Better."


The idea was that I would begin to notice when I did something, however slight, that made things better. That would feel good and be rewarding. I figured I could just keep weaving the word 'better' into my self talk and it would over time train me to keep up.


The problem: I wasn't ready for that kind of jolt.


I did soon start working.


There was a boost. It worked slow at first. I would do one thing and that thing was better. I gently proceeded to the next thing. Now, we are talking about instant gratification--I included as better when one item got put where it belonged. Or adjusted to face right on the shelf. I mean, this isn't an advanced calculus--it is paying a tiny bit more attention during an otherwise routine task.


I had been so blasé for so long that my emotions didn't expect a situation where it was possible to succeed or fail five times in thirty seconds. Naturally, it my brain was excited.


Very excited.


Before long my nervous system was, ahem, nervous with the energy.


The good thing was that this worked. It got me out of a slump, with the speed one would expect from a dose of aspirin. The bad thing was that I didn't know how to manage the intensity. What I expected would be an all day practice, every day, got quickly shelved. Eventually I brought the general idea back for my next job--with a much slower method. That one took a long time to start getting me painfully wired.


Sometimes an idea has power but it does not really work, because you don't really understand it fully. I think if I had shifted priming mantras, I would have had a lot better success. Perhaps if I had added "smooth" to the works. Or "plan." "Inviting." For motivation--for reasons I may share later--I think the word "because" might have been far better. I just didn't have any reason to guess that. The point here is that each of these will have an effect. It doesn't take long to pick a word and bounce it through your mind, at least twice a minute.


With priming mantras, you can learn about a words effects fairly quickly.





BONUS FOR WRITERS: (Suggested Hypothesis for further research)


Once you learn about the effect of a word, you can use it to confidently characterize a character. A person who uses the word "better" a lot is likely to be doing what they better do. A person who uses the word "hint" is likely to be more observant, and more astute. Remember that all the meanings of the word get primed: touch can mean a small amount, and it also means to reach out and do something. It can also bring up touchy.





So, the character who uses touch a lot:


Phrases:


Touch base/keep in touch


A touch of wine


touch and go


Characteristics:


Uses soft fabrics, sits in the softest seats, is diplomatic and tactful. They like to shake hands and pat people, move things around in their environment, and get working right away.





If this word is subtly overused by the character--to the point where the reader feels it but doesn't mention it--and these things are shown in the character, this is likely to seem like a very consistent character.