IF YOU'D LIKE to fulfill your long-held dreams, try a radical approach. Radical people create their own breakthroughs for getting the job, love and health they really want. Nonconformists open to options for achieving “extraordinary” goals that others don’t see.

Take Christopher Columbus. When conventional wisdom proclaimed as fact the world was flat, Columbus held the extreme notion that he could sail over the edge and land in China instead of deep space.

Discovering Fresh Options
Five centuries ago, Europeans reacted with disbelief when they heard that the world is round. If Columbus were to sail into our modern lives with revolutionary factual information about our world, would “enlightened” people believe him now?

Besides demonstrating that the earth is round, Columbus made another equally mind-popping discovery. His revelation is about the power of cultural belief systems and how people see only what they believe they will see.


You See What You Believe
In 1492, Columbus landed on the island of Hispaniola, now the countries of Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Until Columbus’ arrival, the islanders had only seen and heard of small boats—like their canoes. The tribe had never seen nor heard of large ocean-going sea craft. So when the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria arrived, the natives couldn’t see the big ships of Christopher Columbus! And the vessels were floating in plain sight right off shore!

“I Don’t See Any Big Ships!”
Why couldn’t the islanders see the big boats? Because nobody in their culture had ever seen big boats before. And nobody had ever written or talked about big boats in their society.

In any culture, the mythmakers—teachers, historians and media—decide people’s reality. The specific world that mythmakers talk and write about determines the aspects of reality that people are able to perceive. The world that these storytellers talk and write about creates a belief system unique to each culture. And this belief system acts as a filter, screening out realities that don’t fit into the cultural conditioning of the society.

The mythkeepers who shaped the islanders’ belief systems didn’t recognize the possibility that large ships might exist. And the filter of this belief prevented the natives from seeing the three large sea vessels... At first!

3 Keys for Unlocking New Possibilities
The island shaman wasn’t able to see the ships when they first arrived. Like his tribespeople, the shaman medicine man wasn’t able to see past the filters of his cultural conditioning.

But unlike the common folk of his tribe, the medicine man was educated by radical mythmakers—shaman elders. From these elders, the shaman learned that a person only sees the elements in the world that the person’s mind has been exposed to. The shaman also learned these three keys to help him see outside of his belief system — to perceive the world as it really exists.

Key 1 - Look for a Different Pattern
The 1st key, made famous in the movie Star Wars, is to notice “a disturbance in the force.”

Anchored just offshore, Columbus’ ships are creating out-of-the-ordinary patterns in the ocean waves. Even though he can’t see the ships, the observant shaman does notice unexplained variations in the waves.

Key 2 - Don’t Listen to Your Mind!
Curious, the shaman investigates the unusual wave patterns. As he begins his inquiry, he uses the 2nd key: “Don’t trust your mind!”

The 2nd key alerts the shaman to the limitations of his ego-mind. The shaman understands that his mind only perceives realities that his mind has been exposed to by his culture.

Key 3 - Open to New Possibilities
From his elders, the medicine man learned that any unusual pattern in our world always indicates that something has changed in our reality. But, in this instance, the shaman is not yet seeing the specific element that has been added or taken away. In order to see what element has changed, he lets go of how his ego-mind “thinks” the world operates.

As a result of deciding to allow new possibilities into his life — the 3rd key - the shaman sees the cause of the peculiar patterns: the never-before-imagined clipper ships! As soon as the shaman perceives the large ships, he tells his tribe the ships exist and points to exactly where they are. The rest of the islanders are then able to perceive the vessels.

Where Are Those Darn Car Keys?
This remarkable true story resonates with me as I recall comparable experiences in my life. There have been times when I haven’t seen my car keys sitting on a table — even though they were clearly visible.

The dynamics of my situation are similar to those of the islanders who don’t see the ships because of their limited belief system. At first, I don’t see my car keys on the table. So, I decide the keys aren’t there. Once I’ve decided the keys aren’t there, I’ve created a belief that “my keys aren’t on the table.” This belief then filters out my ability to perceive the keys sitting on the table in plain sight. Only when I let go of the belief that “my key’s aren’t on the table” — and decide to open to new possibilities — am I able to perceive the keys!

Live Your Dreams!
What “extraordinary” possibilities have you already decided don’t exist in your world? Have you quit looking for that dream job? Seeking great health? Searching for satisfying love? If you previously made up your mind that you’ll never have a terrific job, body or relationship, guess what...?

Be Your Own Shaman
Become a shaman to discover the opportunities you aren’t seeing in life. Use these 3 radical keys to navigate onto a new, fun playground.

1st Key: Look for out-of-the-ordinary patterns in life. “A disturbance in the force” indicates that there’s an opportunity to see a solution or a course of action you haven’t yet seen in the situation.

2nd Key: Don’t trust your mind! The suggestions of your ego-mind are limited by what you’ve experienced in the past and learned from your cultural mythmakers — your teachers and the media. The beliefs of your mind filter out many advantageous choices and options that are available in life.

3rd Key: Open to fresh possibilities. Invite the unexpected. Allow exciting new options to appear “out of nowhere!”

The island natives couldn’t see the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria clipper ships because the ships were filtered out by the islanders’ limited belief system. Why miss your boat because of the limited belief system of your island? Hop on board! Sail into a new world of fulfilled dreams!

© Sulana Stone, 2004

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

As a personal life coach and vision quest guide, Sulana Stone assists people to discover and express their life purpose through private sessions and workshops. Find out how to get more love in life, a more fulfilling job, or find a purpose beyond the mundane with a FREE Prosperity Ezine and FREE Empowerment Tape at www.SedonaVisionQuest.com. Contact her at sulanastone@yahoo.com or 602.861.2631 for free coaching.