Internal Representations

Internal representations are the images we carry around inside our minds and the way we talk to ourselves inside our heads. They are called 'Internal Representations' because they are just that - representations rather than reality. They may seem extremely real to us (in fact we may be convinced they are real), but they aren't necessarily so - they are just your way of perceiving the world.

Our senses, beliefs and experiences are the rules by which we live. Without beliefs, people would be like boats without a rudder. BUT OUR BELIEFS ARE NOT FACTS (although we often think they are). They are just beliefs, most of which are simply generalisations based on our interpretations of things that have happened in the past.

Three important things to know about Internal representations:

•  Most of us do not consciously decide what we are going to believe

•  Often our beliefs are based on mis interpretation

•  Once we adopt a belief, we forget it's only an interpretation

So - we can choose to have beliefs that hinder us, or beliefs that empower us. We can be positive or we can be negative. We can believe we can, or that we can't. Your mind cannot tell the difference.

During the 1940s and 1950s, running a four-minute mile was the 'holy grail' of athletics. Times of 4.03, 4.02 even 4.01 were common. But nobody could crack the four-minute mark. Most people believed it was physically impossible for a human being to run that fast.

Then on May6, 1954, an English medical student called Roger Bannister achieved the impossible and ran the mile in 3.59.04. What was extraordinary was what happened next. Six weeks later a time of 3.57.09 was achieved, and within eighteen months of Bannister's achievement, a total of sixteen athletes broke the four-minute barrier.

Four minutes had been a psychological barrier rather than a physiological one. While nobody believed it could be done, it couldn't be. But as soon as it was shown to be achievable, breaking it became almost commonplace.

Everyone of us has once believed with 100% certainty that something was correct, but would now accept that we were wrong. As a simple example, who amongst us did not believe with all their heart and soul in Santa? Or the Tooth Fairy?