subject: Trash In, Trash Out - What Do You Feed Your Brain? [print this page] I watched a brief video not long ago that graphically illustrated the Law of Exposure. This law states that whatever you put into your brain literally becomes your future. For instance, if you watch violent movies or TV, or play violent video games you are feeding images, thoughts, and feelings into your brain - you are exposing yourself to this energy. The Law of Exposure says you should be very conscious and mindful about what you expose your brain to, just like you don't knowingly expose your body to Swine flu, tuberculosis, or rabies. Same-same. Trash in, trash out, as the old computer programming mantra goes.
Over the past few years I've consciously removed myself from exposure to blatantly violent images. It's interesting that once I did this, my senses became sharpened to lesser forms of violence, too. For instance, I don't want to watch arguments on TV, or constant sniping. It doesn't serve me to watch Judge Judy, for instance. It doesn't serve me to watch a sit-com where the women are always talking in degrading ways about their husbands, or the husbands are always treating their wives as people to be manipulated and lied to. I've noticed that a lot of what is available to watch on TV is demeaning - as is much of reality TV.
The Law of Exposure states that over time, we become our thoughts and actions. As I write this, it shocks me to suddenly recall that my father often repeated a quote that went something like "we will rise, fall, or remain the same according to our greatest thoughts and deeds." That's not exact, and I can't find the original quote or who said it, but whomever it was, long ago, understood the Law of Exposure.
It's my experience in working with hundreds of clients that entrepreneurs need a very enriching and conscious diet for their brains. The books we read, the movies we watch, the teachers we follow - these feed our gray matter, our spirits, and our souls. We are, in my opinion, literally called to do our work. If you are feeling sluggish, bored, unsuccessful, or otherwise stuck take 15 minutes to reflect on what you've lately been feeding your brain. And while you are at it, reflect on what your own brain has been feeding others as you speak and act. Trash in, trash out - that's a powerful thought, no?
