Hot Glass Cold Glass
So back when my husband, Justin, was in college, he took a chemistry lab.
On the first day of class, his professor went through safety protocols and pointed out an essential piece of wisdom to his students.
He picked up a glass beaker in one hand and a bunsen burner in the other and said:
“Hot glass looks like cold glass, but it FEELS different.”
I love this so much. It makes me laugh every single time.
Hot glass looks like cold glass, but feels different.
The same could be said for beliefs and misbeliefs.
They look the same.
Unfortunately, at least on the surface, they feel the same, too.
They feel TRUE.
Our beliefs shape the decisions we make.
Whether they’re around the big questions (Is there a God? What is the meaning of life? Is Tom Brady human or cyborg?) or the small ones, they are the foundation from which we decide everything.
Some beliefs we are intimately aware of and we know exactly how and when they came to be.
Others are buried deeper and take a little excavating to uncover.
This is where curiosity comes in.
What if we paused for a moment in the midst of our decision-making and asked ourselves a few questions?
What is my instinct here?
Why do I think that?
When did I come to believe that?
When I stop and consider, do I really believe it or have I been conditioned to believe it or is it an outdated habit to believe it?
Does it serve me?
Does it serve what is important to me?
Can you see how powerful this might be?
There are a lot of ways to do this work.
To start examining the beliefs that we carry into our decision-making with us.
I’m always, always a fan of jotting things down.
So much can be learned from simply writing a few notes on our thought processes as we move through our decisions.
Talking things through with a trusted friend or therapist or coach can be incredibly illuminating.
Or just giving some space to consider your beliefs, to pause and think a little about them in different contexts while you’re out for a walk or taking a shower or pushing your cart up and down the aisles of the grocery store.
Or, of course, you can join us this Saturday at the Say The Word retreat!
We'll explore this idea and dig into identifying our own beliefs and misbeliefs.
We’ll talk about how to tell the difference between the two.
I’d truly love to see you there.
Hot glass looks like cold glass, but feels different.
As you move through your week this week, try to pay a little more attention to your decisions large and small, and what underlying thoughts, judgments, and questions are tucked into each.
Double check to make sure the beliefs at the foundations of those decisions are as true as they initially appear.
That you still believe them and that they aren’t simply defaults or habits that you’ve grown accustomed to.