The Power of Our Expectations

A recent article in Scientific America suggests that half the battle in fighting the obesity epidemic lies in managing our expectations of how full we might feel after a meal. They suggest restaurants can also help us by changing the title of their meals to something like "just right" selections in order to subconsciously trick us into expecting to eat less and thus to lose weight.

Power of Self Persuasion

A similar technique has been used by monks for centuries to reduce their expectations and attachments to particular objects in the world. Essentially, these buddhist monks would perform naming and other destructive rituals to slowly change their perceptions of material things over time, and begin to let go of desire. While we might not have the same goal in mind when we attempt to curb our unhealthy eating habits, we can still use similar mind tricks to change our own expectations and slowly reform our habits.

Changing Our Expectations

If your expectation of a good workout is maintaining an elevated heart-rate for a period of time, you will notice you feel different effects post workout (and weeks afterwards) than if you simply expect to sweat or to be minimally sore. Similarly, if you expect devotional worship to be an ecstatic explosion of emoton, you might not feel satisfied or even overlook services that provide quiet moments of introspection that are necessary for meditating on the speakers message and hearing that still small voice that presses you to go deeper.

So, whether it be an attempt to ward off obesity, get a better workout or reach deeper spiritual enrichment, our preconceived expectations and definitions of everyday experiences can be reshaped through the use of the mind to help us accomplish those goals for self and soul improvement.