While the conscious mind is remarkable, the subconscious mind is even more awe-inspiring! As your conscious mind processes one choice or action, your subconscious mind simultaneously processes unconscious choices and actions. Once activated, subconscious goals, choices, and actions persist until met. Research indicates that it is not possible to prime your unconscious. However, there are activities and exercises that may allow you to access and or expand your awareness of your subconscious.
Practice positive self talk. Replace your negative self talk with affirmations. Shifting your language will alter your mindset and override negative subconscious actions and thoughts. Replace “I can’t do this!” with “I can do this!” Instead of saying “I fail at everything!” exclaim “I will succeed!” If you catch yourself slipping back into negative self-talk, pause and take a deep breath. Consider why you are telling yourself you won’t succeed. Identify the factors that caused you to become negative. Note that these factors are triggers and recommit to affirming yourself.
This shift in your language won’t happen overnight. It takes time and consistency. Remain positive as you work toward ridding yourself of negative subconscious expectations and behaviors.
Craft a positive mantra. When anxiety or stress arises, calm your nerves and quell negative thoughts by repeating a personally crafted mantra. Consistent use of the mantra will subdue negative thoughts and actions that arise from your subconscious mind. Identify your negative thoughts and accept that your self-judgement is unfounded. Create a healing mantra by identifying the opposite of your self-judgemental claim. Craft two additional mantras that express the same idea; use them interchangeably. Select a spot in your body to ground the positivity. The spot could be your heart or your stomach. Place your hand on the spot as you repeat the mantra. Focus on the action and swell with confidence.
Visualize specific goals. Be specific about what it is that you want to achieve. Identify the location, time, and circumstances surrounding your success. Go into as much detail as possible!
Don’t envision yourself as superhuman; instead imagine yourself as you really are.
How can you craft a positive mantra?
By thinking about your dreams.
Not exactly! Regulating your breathing can be very beneficial to overcoming negative thinking. You can use your breath in tandem with your positive mantra and visualization, but it won't help you to craft a mantra. Guess again!
By saying the opposite of your self-judgemental claim.
Absolutely! You can use your positive mantra to combat and quiet the negative thoughts and actions in your mind. One of the most effective ways to create your mantra is to see exactly what those negative thoughts are and to say the opposite. You will want to craft a few mantras to use interchangeably. Read on for another quiz question.
Prepare to meditate. Meditation will help you focus and harness your subconscious mind. Before meditating, determine the length of your session. If you are a beginner, try to meditate for 5 minutes. Change into comfortable clothes. Grab a timer and proceed to a quiet, peaceful environment. Choose a location without clutter or distractions. Sit outside, on the floor your apartment, or on your back porch. Stretch before assuming a comfortable seated position. Touch your toes, release the tension from your neck, and relax your shoulders.
Establish your posture. Find a stable seat. Sit in a straight backed chair with your feet planted firmly on the ground or cross-legged on top of a pillow on the floor. Straighten your back—your spine’s natural curve should be present. Position your upper arms parallel to the sides of your body. Your elbows will have a slight bend and your hands will naturally fall gently atop your knees. Lower your chin slightly and gaze at the floor. Settle into the position, become aware of your body, before you proceed.
Focus on your breathing and your passing thoughts. Close your eyes and begin to follow your breath. Focus on your inhale and your exhale. As you relax, your mind will wander. Thoughts will flow from your subconscious mind to your conscious mind. Note these thoughts, but don’t judge them. Allow these thoughts to pass. When you realize your mind has wandered, return your attention to your breathing. In time, your mind will wander again. Always continue to come back to your breath. Repeat this process until your session is complete.
Nope! People have busy minds and it's natural that you will begin to think when you first settle down into your meditation. Keep practicing and over time you will become adept at waving those thoughts along. There’s a better option out there!
Absolutely! It's natural for your mind to wander during meditation. Acknowledge that your thoughts are passing, but do not judge them, simply send them on their way. Then use your breathing as a guide to return to the meditative state. Read on for another quiz question.
Touch your hands to your knees.
Get prepared. Gather a pencil or pen and a pad of paper. Find a timer—an egg timer, stop watch, or your phone will work—a set it for 5 or 10 minutes Settle into a quiet, distraction-free environment. Set your phone to silent. Avoid using a computer or tablet—they provide you with too many distractions!
Begin writing. Sit in a comfortable position and take a deep breath to center yourself. Start the timer and begin writing. Never approach stream of consciousness writing with an agenda but allow your thoughts to flow naturally from one to another. As the thoughts enter your head, record them on paper. Don’t avoid writing down the mundane thoughts or ignore the odd thoughts—these may have arisen from your subconscious mind. Don’t judge the thoughts or stop to analyze them. Just write. Continue recording your thoughts until the timer buzzes.
Analyze your writing. When the session is complete, read over your thoughts. Reflect upon your words. Identify recurring thoughts or odd phrases. Try to find a link between two disparate ideas. Make note of any potential subconscious thoughts. As you continue to execute this exercise, read over your work from previous sessions. Trace your progress with stream of consciousness writing and assess if your unconscious mind has revealed itself.
Typing on a computer or tablet.
Coming in with an agenda.
That's right! Stream of consciousness writing can be very effective, but it's important to do it properly. Try to limit your distractions and focus simply on getting your thoughts out on the page. The rest will come later. Read on for another quiz question.
Record your dreams. Before falling asleep, place a pen or pencil and a journal next to your bed. When you wake up in the morning, or periodically throughout the night, record your dreams in your journal. Write down every detail of your dreams you can recall. Jot down the minor details, no matter how mundane or insignificant they may appear. If you have been recording your dreams for a while, make note of any recurring concepts, characters, or objects.
Your subconscious mind is revealed in your dreams. Therefore, recording and studying your dreams provides you with access to your unconscious mind.
Decide if your dream was significant and categorize it. An insignificant dream incorporates aspects of your physical surroundings—you may incorporate smells, sounds, and physical actions occurring around you into your dream; a significant dream is derived from your subconscious mind—it is not a common dream but an odd, puzzling, or illuminating dream. If your dream was significant, determine which category of subconscious dreams it falls under. Was it a precognitive dream that revealed details about future events? Was the dream a warning? Was it factual—did it confirm what you already knew? Did the dream inspire you or fulfill one of your desires? Did your dream fulfill your wish or need to reconcile with someone or something?
Vivid dreams are often more significant.
Interpret your significant dreams. You do not have to be an expert to analyze your own dreams! All it requires is a little effort and research. There are handy resources online and at your local library! When analyzing your dream, assess it as a whole. Each detail you recall has significance and will enhance your interpretation of your dream, as well as your understanding of your subconscious mind. If the dream dictionary’s definition of a symbol is inadequate, try assessing the dream within the context of your own life. Try to determine for yourself if there is a reason this image, person, or thing is appearing in your dreams.
What might you find in a precognitive dream?
That's right! Precognitive dreams fall into the significant dreams category. They offer information about something coming in the future and, though not always clear, they can say a lot. If you believe you've been experiencing precognitive dreams, check online or your library to learn more. Read on for another quiz question.
Not quite! This type of dream and precognitive dreams both fall into the significant dream category, but this is not an example of a precognitive dream. There’s a better option out there!
Inspiration to fulfill a desire.
Try again! There are many different types of significant dreams and both this example and precognitive dream are some of them. Still, the inspiration to fulfill a desire is a unique type of dream all on its own and separate from precognitive dreams. There’s a better option out there!
What are the benefits of controlling the unconscious mind?
If you control your subconsious mind, you can easily identify your feelings and take control of your life.
After a relationship breakup, how can I control my thoughts subconsciously to stop thinking about past events, let go of attachments, and avoid going into a negative emotional state?
The past is gone, the future has not come yet. Live the present moment. Focus on what's going on right now, and engage in activities you enjoy to help distract yourself from negative thought patterns.
How can I control negative thoughts?
Try to remember a good moment in your life. Recall how you felt then and compare it to how you feel now. Try to summon that feeling from your memory. Think of it as though you have just experienced it again.
How do I start at the beginning?
Don't think how to start. Simply start in the most comfortable way you feel.
Is prayer a type of meditation?
Why do I sometimes have negative thoughts about the future?
It's natural to have worries and fears about the future. Just don't let them control you or stop you from pursuing your goals.
What are the mental and physical effects of dreams or nightmares?
Dreams and nightmares are thought to have a number of benefits for the mind and brain. Bad dreams are a way for your brain to practice dealing with difficult and emotional situations so that you are better prepared to face problems and challenges in real life. You will always have some of these, whether you remember them or not. However, the more stressed, afraid, or otherwise agitated you are, the more likely they are to increase in frequency and intensity. They should help keep you strong mentally. Good dreams, meanwhile, have benefits similar to daydreaming - they make you feel good and they enhance creativity/imagination. Dreams don't have any physical effects beyond helping keep your brain chemistry in check. If you find that, for example, you look or feel worse when you have nightmares, it's not caused by the nightmares - it's more likely that you're just in a poor mental and/or physical state, which is causing both the nightmares and the physical symptoms.
Why do I forget my dreams sometimes?
It is no different than forgetting other new things like musical instruments, new dance forms or new languages. You can train your brain to remember better and make sure that you record your dreams first thing after waking up.
What's a positive mantra I can concentrate on?
Try "I am awesome and can achieve my goals" or "I am pretty, witty, and humorous."
Can these exercises also enhance mental and physical performance?
They can do, yes. You are creating a belief system that will help you to progress towards your goals. Thus, if your goal is to improve something involving physical or mental performance, the exercises may take you there.
Why is the subconscious mind more powerful than the conscious mind?
If you want to have better control over your subconscious mind, sit in a comfortable place and meditate for 5 minutes a day to get in touch with your inner self. When you’re meditating, sit so that your back is straightened into its natural curve. Position your upper arms parallel to the side of your body, with your hands resting naturally on top of your knees. Gaze at the floor, becoming aware of your body, and breathe deeply. When your mind wanders, return your attention to your breathing until the time is up. To learn how to control your subconscious mind through stream-of-consciousness writing, keep reading.
Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 1,135,809 times.
"I was always searching for a way to control and train my subconscious mind but never found such effective methods."
"wikiHow always gives the clear vision to proceed the things.Step by step explanation makes it easier to follow!"
"My strategy matched with one of the details, think positively and nothing will come negative in your mind."
"Wonderful facts to help me not walk in my sleep and I know that I use my subconscious mind to do that."
"Just having this information out there to read with tips to help you succeed was great!!"
"I can now begin to visualize the possibility of the things I want to achieve in my life!"
"Amazing, yet simple. But it works! Simple and small do make grand changes in life."
"It made me aware of how to benefit from the subconscious and of its importance."
"Made me aware of the importance of the subconsious and how to benefit from it."
"Give me tips how to enter subconscious mind and deactivate conscious mind."
"Very powerful technique! It will help many people to find themselves."
"All good. I even relaxed while studying this article. Thanks a lot."
"The most helpful tip was teaching people how to talk to the crowd."
"It brought in me what I was lacking in. It was excellent."