About Thoughts, Thought Patterns , Knowing and Know How
Thoughts, patterns, and know-how are not innate; they develop as soon as the last layer of our brain becomes active, which is around the age of 1 year old.
This part of the brain is called the Neo-Cortex, and, besides other functions, it helps us analyze, plan, choose between options, and translate concrete experiences into language. It makes us different from animals, as far as we know now and can be compared with the coachman in Gurdjieffs metaphor about our journey through life.
Trained from the very beginning of our life and continuously developping during the first 4 to 7 years, it maybe clear that most of our abilities to think are related to what we experienced, modeled with and saw from our caretakers and educators. Most patterns that appear later, are rooted in those of our childhood.
Thoughts in this article are considered as talks, dialogues or discussions inside ourself or with others.
Thought Patterns are cognitive structures that direct the way we think, perceive and experience life. They are detectable in the way we talk and write.
Knowing, meaning the idea or belief that you know this or that, which maybe the biggest limitation of identification with our thinking from the larger body-mind identification.
Know How is used about knowing by experience and/or combined with learning by example (modeling), teachings or scriptures. It therefore can be very personal as well as more general.
Thought patterns
It was Virginia Satyr, a Family Therapist, we can differentiate all kind of patterns into three large groups, appearing as single or combined thought pattern. There are many, many sub patterns; but we name just the more general ones.
Deletion:
We overlook details or the bigger picture, and having an unconscious preference to perceive life through one or two of the 5 main senses.
Examples: Your house looks really nice, I love the colors you used (Visual). It’s a nice house, but hearing the traffic so well? (Auditive) Oh how comfortable it feels here. (Kinesthetic). How is your kitchen, is it sufficient for you since you like to cook such delicious diners? (Olfactor and Gustative).
Other examples can show where a preference of attention, like for people, activity, information, places or things.
Distortion:
We change or misinterpret sensory input to match our existing beliefs. Some of these patterns are Cause & Effect and Mind reads.
He cannot find a good job because his eduction is poor.
She feels sad (mind reads has to do with misinterpreting a neutral glance (she lookes downward) as a sign of being down or sad.
Generalization:
We make broad conclusions based on one or two experiences
Examples can be found by the expression with words like All, Always, Never, Nobody, Everything etc.
There are many, many sub patterns; here we mentioned the once that maybe more easy to discover without studying the matter.
General Discovery suggestions can be found in Homework.
Questions for Journaling about Thoughts
write or record daily 3 to 5 sentences about one of suggestions, reflect after a week, and note what you discovered and what kind of identification-pattern you found.
1. How do you experience yourself to find Automatic Negative Thoughts (ANT’s that repeat themselves and may ‘bite’ you), considering your activities, desires, emotions, etc.
2 What was the tone of your inner or outer talk, dialogue or discussion today? Supportive, criticizing, defending, explaining?
3 What beliefs may be are behind?
3 Which tasks or topics made you feel resistance or the urge to procrastinate? With what kind of thoughts are they connected, which you were identified with?
4 What repetitive situations happened today and how do you think about it? What are your thought patterns or expectations that act as a hindrance?
5 How about statements like: I know what you mean. I know this person? I know what the Master is talking about? Can you write down what exactly do you know?
6 Which thoughtpatterns do you recognize when receiving feedback or reflecting on your journaling?
Back to Homework:
about discovering and challenge identifications via
* Emotions
* Behavior
* Triggers, related to be with others
* In- and external Communication Patterns
* Levels of Life, incl. The Bypass syndrome