The most primary activity of the human mind is to interpret, organize, and draw
conclusions from our life experience. Most of this organizing activity takes place
unconsciously.
As children, we unconsciously organize our early relational experiences in a distinct way
that results in the formation of fundamental “organizing principles” or emotional
convictions. Organizing principles are the mental templates that determine the way we
experience ourselves, others, and the world. Negative or limiting organizing principles
are therefore the primary cause of our self-defeating behaviors and what’s holding us
back from being happier and more empowered.
If your parents consistently ignored your feelings, you may have developed an organizing
principle such as, “My feelings don’t matter.” The result of this organizing principle
might be a profound sense of loneliness and isolation. If you grew up with constant
criticism, you may have concluded, “In order to survive, I must hurt others first before
they hurt me.”
What makes things more challenging is when our life experience consistently seems to
confirm the truth of our limiting organizing principles. When this happens, we are likely
to believe that our organizing principles are absolute facts that can never change.
The good news is they can change and when they change, new possibilities for one’s life
evolve. By identifying and bringing one’s organizing principles into the light of
conscious awareness, their meanings and contexts can be examined and understood. The
wonderful result of this reflective process is that new, more flexible, and empowering
organizing principles can arise which can become integrated into the fabric of one’s
psyche. This results in significant improvements in one’s attitudes, behaviors, and
feeling more alive and in control of one’s life.