During the first six years of life a child unconsciously acquires the behavioral repertoire needed to become a functional member of society. In addition, a child’s subconscious mind also downloads beliefs relating to self. When a parent tells a young child it is stupid, undeserving or any other negative trait, this too is downloaded as a ‘fact’ into the youngster’s subconscious mind. These acquired beliefs constitute the ‘central voice’ that controls the fate of the body’s cellular community. While the conscious mind may hold one’s self in high regard, the more powerful unconscious mind may simultaneously engage in self-destructive behavior.

The insidious part of the autopilot mechanism is that subconscious behaviors are programmed to engage without the control of, or the observation by, the conscious self. Since most of our behaviors are under the control of the subconscious mind, we rarely observe them or much less know that they are even engaged. While your conscious mind perceives you are a good driver, the unconscious mind that has its hands on the wheel most of the time, may be driving you down the road to ruin.

We have been led to believe that by using will power, we can override the negative programs of our subconscious mind. Unfortunately, to do that, you really have to emphasize the word ‘power,’ for one must keep a constant vigil on one’s own behavior. The moment you lapse in consciousness, the subconscious mind will automatically engage and play its previously recorded experience-based programs.

The subconscious mind is really a tape player. There is no observing entity in the subconscious mind reviewing the behavioral tapes. Consequently, there is no discernment as to whether a subconscious behavioral program is good or bad…they are just tapes. The subconscious is strictly a playback machine, perceived stimuli engage preprogrammed behaviors. In fact, people upon seeing their own subconscious programs play out frequently say something like, “That guy just pushed my buttons!”

In contrast to the power of the conscious mind, the subconscious mind is a million times more powerful an information processor. Also, as neuroscientists emphasize, the conscious mind provides 5% or less of the cognitive activity during the day. Ninety-five to ninety-nine percent of our behavior is directly derived from the subconscious. Hence the use of the word ‘power’ in the concept of will power, it takes significant effort for the conscious mind to keep tabs on the subconscious behavior. Positive thinking is primarily effective if the subconscious supports the conscious intention.