Written by: Calvin Niles, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
If you're like most people, you probably believe that your thoughts are a true reflection of reality. But what if I told you that your mind is often playing tricks on you? That's right ‒ your thoughts may not always be accurate. One of our biggest challenges is we often take those first brain-based ideas, wants, psychological responses, urges, and wishes at face value and believe they must be real. Once fear is added to the mix, then the problem of accepting thoughts as facts compounds.
Have you ever been in a scenario where a persistent thought of something you didn't want to happen crippled you with fear? Sometimes something happens that you don't want to happen. Other times, you start thinking about things that you don't want to happen, and it doesn’t. Yet the effect on you is the same and it triggers a sequence of events that you unintentionally set in motion.
A tale of the foolish rabbit
There is a story called The Foolish Rabbit, about a rabbit who was resting under a tree one day when he awoke and had a thought, "What if the ground opened up right now and swallowed me whole?" Just then, a monkey dropped a coconut from the tree behind him as he was thinking this. Of course, this frightened him, and he bolted for his life. "The ground is trembling! It's about to burst open and engulf me completely!" And as he runs through the forest, he comes across a second rabbit and says, "the ground is shaking, it's trying to consume us alive," and off they go screaming, and then they pause and inform another rabbit, and so on until there are a hundred rabbits fleeing the scene.
Eventually, a hundred rabbits, who are fleeing for their life, come across a fox, who asks, "What are you guys fleeing from?"
“The ground is planning on opening and engulfing us whole," the rabbit said to the fox. You must flee for your safety! So the fox joins the run, and now we've got a hundred rabbits and a fox sprinting for their life through the woods. They now come across a deer, who asks the fox, "What's happening?" The fox, of course, says the same thing. So, as they're racing for their lives, they come upon a lion, who barricades their route.
“Where are you going so quickly? What are you trying to get away from?” And, of course, the deer claims that, “we're fleeing for our existence since the earth is about to swallow us whole.”
And the lion said, "Well, do you have any proof for that? Show me!”
And the deer said, "Well, I haven't seen it myself, but the fox stated that." Nevertheless, the fox replied, "I haven't seen it myself," to which the rabbit replied, "That's what this bunny said," pointing to the 100th bunny. The hundredth rabbit, obviously, said, "Well, I haven't really seen him either,” and then referred to the rabbit next to him, and so on until they reached the first rabbit.
“Take me to this area where you fear the earth is about to open up and devour us whole,” says the lion.
So the rabbit escorts him back to the tree where he was fast asleep and of course, they see a coconut right where the rabbit was sleeping. The lion then replies to the rabbit, "You silly rabbit, the ground isn't going to open up and devour us whole; a coconut merely dropped next to you."
How to unhook from thoughts
Fear is at the root of many of our beliefs and perceptions. However, it is critical to maintain our ideas in their proper place and not to dwell on them excessively so that don’t accept everything we think as facts.
Question: Ask yourself the question, is what I am thinking true?” That is just what the lion did. He questioned the dominant thinking which helps to make a little more room for perspective.
Notice: You can say to yourself; I am aware I am having the thought that….” In the case of the 1st rabbit, if it stopped and noticed that it was having a thought, it would be connecting to an observer within him who is witnessing the thought. This also helps create the space from the thought to develop new perspectives.
Stop and listen to the present: Sometimes just tuning in to your senses can bring you out of thoughts, and into reality. What is real is what is here now. By listening, we can leave the past and the future and unhook from what happened, or might happen; we accept what is here.
Not many people fully accept that their thoughts are just thoughts. You'll be able to better let your thoughts come and go if you can learn to unhook from your internal conversation. In fact, the impact of allowing will probably lighten your mood!
SOAR Book Club has been reading books on developing presence in 2022. We’ve learned that when we take a moment to stop and be present, it can be incredibly transformative. If you are ready for some positive change in your life, consider yourself spiritually curious or just want to grow in a fun community, then join us at one of our next book club meetings. Visit us at https://calvinniles.com/soar for more. We’d love to have you.
Want to create a new story for your life? Follow Calvin for more on stories, mindfulness and poetry on his YouTube channel, connect with him on Instagram or visit his website for more.
Calvin Niles, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Calvin Niles is a communication coach known as The Mindful Storyteller, making a positive impact on the lives of leaders, entrepreneurs, coaches, and wider society through his services and products. Through his experience in mindfulness, storytelling, coaching, and business, he empowers others to be authentic and impactful in their communication. Calvin has worked with hundreds of people from leaders in large corporates to SMEs, and from solopreneurs to some of the top 10 charities in the UK.
