When I was a kid I had this 150 in 1 electronic kit.

It had a bunch of raw circuit elements, with these little springs.

You could connect the various elements together by sticking a small wire into the spring, and into another spring.

All in all, you could make 150 separate circuits.

The two I can remember are a lie detector, and a strobe light.

Of course it came with an extensive manual; connect point C3 to point D9, for example.

Each circuit had 5 to 10 connections.

It’s a good metaphor for how our brains work.

They have all these separate “components” that can be “wired” together in different ways.

It also helps to understand how our subconscious processor works.

I think it’s better to think of it as an ultra-fast computer rather than some metaphysical mystery.

It computes ultra fast, base on sensory inputs (sights, smells, etc.) and memory, and it’s output is a “feeling,” either a good one or a bad one. Good means go, bad means don’t.

Like when you hear a song that is associated with all kinds of good memories or experiences, that song triggers all those memories on an unconscious level, which then delivers a good “feeling.” You can then take that feeling and consciously recall all those good memories. That’s kind of what happens when you “zone out” for a few minutes.

Similarly, when you encounter some sensory evidence that brings up a ton of “bad” memories, you get an opposite reaction. A bad feeling that makes you freeze. You suddenly want nothing to do with anybody, and get that feeling of wanting to curl up into a ball and hide from the world.

The good news is that you can use the “circuit theory” to rewire HOW those automatic feelings are generated.

Those original circuits were wired when you were very young. Too young to even process language in some cases.

But you learned that some “experiences” were bad, and were best if you didn’t act.

You also learned that some “experiences” are good, and told you to charge ahead.

So way later on, in your current life, any similar experience will trigger those same bad (or good) feelings.

But they are NOT hard wired in there. They are only connected (metaphorically) like on those springs. All you have to do is bend the spring a little bit, pull out the wire, and stick it somewhere else.

Now, you don’t really need to open up your brain pan and look in the mirror while you work on your gray matter with electrical tools.

You can rewire your noggin by imagining certain things in certain orders.

This is a lot of what NLP is, conscious manipulation of emotions and images.

Only what they usually leave out of most NLP trainings is you have to do it A LOT for it to “stick.”

It’s not a “once and done” thing like it’s usually taught.

But just like playing the piano or juggling, the more you practice, the better get.

And if you want to “practice” feeling fantastic in as many situations as possible, check this out:

Fearless