How does Change Happen?

a la Susan Forward 

I've been in the 'change business' since 1996, having been intrigued with it for years before that.  And I've found it's been around a lot longer than I knew about it!  Even so, it seems change is still a nebulous thing.  Today I was reading a book by Susan Forward and here's a quick way of understanding it.  (Her words!)

Beliefs lead to rules, emotions make you obey them, and that is what leads to behavior. 
If you want to change your behavior, you've got to work all the way through the equation, 
changing your beliefs and feelings in order to change the rules.

     

The way it's been for a long time is to focus changing the behavior.  And many times this has been accomplished by associating something really unpleasant with the behavior that's not wanted.  (Which is how punishment maybe got started?) And there was little thought to beliefs and emotions having anything to do with anything.

Which has some merits.  A lot of training (that works!) is done through behavioral modification.  

And maybe there was a focus on behavior because we can very often see the behavior.  We can witness it.  Beliefs and emotions, on the other hand, are somewhat hidden.  And can be denied.    

Emotions and beliefs are like wind.

And then, wind sculpts the sand.  

As Karen Pryor mentions in Don't Shoot the Dog, the best modifications come by addressing motivation.  In Susan's equation, motivation is identified as beliefs and emotions.  

This then changes the emphasis on where to put the attention to creating change.  We learn how to change how the wind blows.  The sand responds.

So one of the choices is, which to change first?  The behavior which results from the beliefs and emotions?  Or the beliefs and emotions that generate the behavior?

(a)	(b)

Realizing this opens up a whole new world of possibility!  And there are now several ways to identify and change emotions and beliefs that are quick and efficient, that are just about as complicated as flipping a switch.  

That's where it gets really exciting.

03/05/18

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Information on Change

Books About Change:

Books

I love books! These top three books help explain some about Resonance Repatterning^® and PSYCH-K^TM.  I've linked into Amazon for convenience.  (ha)  I used to have an 'a-store;' those are gone now!  And so are my reviews of things.  If you go to the Old Favorites links, the info is old but there are some reviews there.   When you are interested in getting a book, a lot of these are available at  https://openlibrary.org/.

• On Amazon

• Old Favorites 

  Physical Conditioning Nutrition Communication In Print Riding Dressage

  Reiki & Subtle Energies Nature Intelligences Realtionship Greatness Relationship Oddness Astrology

Organizations

• Resonance Repatterning Institute®
• PSYCH-K^TM 
• "Living In a Body"  
• Alexander Alliance SouthWest
• Ortho-Bionomy®