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Authentic Leadership
What do you feel when you hear the word “change”? Does it excite you or does it fill you with anxiety and dread?
Nothing stays the same and nothing is permanent. Let’s take time to reflect on our own lives. Imagine if nothing had changed since 1961, or 1971, or how about 1981 or even 1991. Obviously technology has changed significantly in that time, but so have we. We have grown up, loved several times, lost family and friends, started new jobs, achieved promotion, suffered illnesses, earned money, lost money, bought our homes, seen our children born and watched as they made the same mistakes we made.
Nothing stays the same, and we should thank God or the Universe or whoever is in charge that this is the case.
However, change gets harder as we get older. “You can’t teach an old dog a new trick” they say. Or can you? When we are born, our brains are hungry learning machines. For the first 5 years of our lives our brains are like sponges. We absorb everything we hear, touch, touch, taste and feel. The brain wants to learn, it wants to solve problems and it wants to adapt to its environment. So what happens? Why does our appetite for learning diminish over time?
It’s simple. We learn only as much as we need to know to survive. We are constrained by the teaching techniques of our education system. And we protect ourselves from the hurt created when we expose ourselves. Creativity is stifled and expression contained. This is true for some anyway.
Most of us know about the genius of the young Mozart. At the age of 4 his father taught him a few minuets which he could play without fault, in time and with the greatest delicacy. At the age of five he was already composing pieces such as Andante and Allegro in C. Mozart grew to become one of the greatest and arguably the greatest composer of all time.
So, it’s just the few then that are geniuses? Or is there genius in us all? Do the few search for the key that unlocks the genius within while the rest of us learn to hide the key from everyone including ourselves?
Let’s look at some facts about the brain.
83% of the brain mass is not conscious. It is outside of our awareness.
Our conscious brain has a speed of impulse which can reach up to 140 mph. Not bad eh? However, the unconscious brain reaches speeds of over 100,000 mph.
The conscious brain processes information at 2,000 bits per second. Yes you’ve guessed it; the unconscious brain is faster at processing information. Much faster. It processes information at no less than 400,000,000,000 (400 billion) bits per second.
The unconscious brain has control of up to 98% of our control and perception.
The unconscious brain does not set goals, but powerfully it executes the goals it is provided with, without judgment.
The unconscious brain does not perceive the past or the future. Everything is happening now.
The conscious brain has a short term memory, for some of us it is as much as 20 seconds. The unconscious brain remembers every experience forever. It forgets nothing.
So, when we want to change should we tap into our conscious or subconscious brain? Well of course we should tap into both. The conscious brain often referred to as our working memory or 20 cents computer, is useful for determining the change we think we want and for setting goals. The subconscious brain or the “billion dollar computer” is the power room that drives us forward or holds us back.
Aha! Our subconscious holds us back at times. Have you ever procrastinated and wondered why you couldn’t pick up that phone, or take that action. You feel uneasy but can’t put your finger on it. That’s your subconscious, the part of the brain that is all powerful and remembers everything. It remembers every call you made and the actions you took and feels the negative emotions associated with those experiences as if it were today.
So what’s needed? We could spend time and money on years and years of psychotherapy and meditation (I’m not knocking either you understand). For me, I have come across the new generation of Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) known as ALP or Authentic Leadership Program. Most of us will have heard of Anthony Robbins and Christopher Howard. These guys are exceptional people; they transform lives with their own utility of NLP.
Where NLP helps to change the way we think and therefore change the actions and results from our thinking, ALP goes to the heart of our thoughts. To the person that was born without the baggage of set-backs, trauma’s and unhealthy learning. ALP guides us through the walls of our world to think outside the box, to lose the box altogether. ALP widens our horizons so we become the people others want to follow.
When we are authentic, we build trust. When we build trust, we build powerful relationships at home, at work and in business. Authenticity cannot be faked. We either are or are not authentic. As the slogan of a well known advert in the UK states “it does exactly what it says on the tin”.
ALP is coming to Australia in October 2008.
If you are interested in learning more please do not hesitate to call me on 02 8006 1065 or e-mail me at eugene@thelifegym.com.au
Or visit the website at http://www.holigralinternational.com/pages/philosophy.html
