Why do we behave the way we do?

‘Change’ is the most sought word consciously or unconsciously by all of us. We all want to change for the better! It could be better person, habits, values, job, earnings, relations etc. But it is quite challenging for most of us to adapt to new practices and habits. We find ourselves as the chief ‘enemy’. Why do we behave the way we do?  Well, we need to be aware of:

1.      Homeostasis: The unconscious tendency to be drawn irresistibly towards doing what we have always done. It is the natural mechanism built in us to function automatically in many areas. It is this mechanism that keeps our body temperature at 98.6 Fahrenheit. It also maintains the chemical balance within our bodies. It has the tendency to keep us in the ‘comfort zone’ whenever we do something contrary to our current habits. It’s nature’s way to keep us consistent with the way we’ve been in the past. But we should remember, “Everything we want is out of our comfort zones.”

2.      Psycho sclerosis- This is can be termed as “hardening of attitudes.” It is the tendency to fall in love with our own ideas and to defend them against new ones. Many of us remain average because we fail to be open to new ideas. We become too rigid. The mark of superior people is that they are mentally flexible to accept new ideas.

3.      Power of Love: Much of what we do is to get love or compensate for the lack of love in our early childhood. This emotion exerts strong influence on our choices and decisions. Almost everything we do – the goals we set, the dreams we dream, the commitments are influenced by the power of love. When we want to change, everything we do must be consistent with the amount of love and respect we have for ourselves and that others have for us. We should start by loving ourselves.

4.      Power of Suggestion: Our mind is affected by everything that goes around us. The suggestive environment around us has an impact on everything we become or what happens to us. Much of the suggestive environment around us is negative The media, the people who whine and carp, the “ain’t it awful” talking etc. We need to have control over this suggestive environment around us purposefully. We should create our own positive world conducive to the person we want to become.

Knowledge and awareness of why we behave the way we do is the first step that we all can take towards bona fide change!