“Believe in your heart that you’re meant to live a life full of passion, purpose, magic
and miracles.”
Beliefs. We all have them. They shape how we view the world. How we view ourselves. How we view relationships.
Although we all have beliefs, they are often hidden in plain sight. They exist all around us—even within us. We abide by them—even if we are not aware of them.
Have you ever thought about what you believe? Do you know what you believe? Do you know why you believe what you do?
Beliefs are not unlike other possessions, your favorite socks, favorite shoes, or favorite outfit. Sometimes we wear our possessions where others see them—sometimes they are tucked away in closets—or even—under the bed. Nonetheless, they are still possessions even when they are not seen.
Some beliefs are clearly evident. Other beliefs, such as prejudice, bias, and bigotry, may be deeply buried—only showing on certain occasions.
Your actions are the radar detector of beliefs. Sometimes, it is our actions that reveal our beliefs more so than the words we speak.
To gain a deeper understanding of both our own beliefs and the beliefs of others, we are embarking on a journey—one with well-defined milestones to light our way.
Consider for a moment that you're setting off on a road trip without the aid of GPS or a map, venturing into uncharted territory. You've never traversed this path before, so there's no memory to rely on. Visualize the experience. Would you find yourself repeatedly stopping to seek directions from others? Or perhaps experimenting with different routes, hoping to make progress toward your destination?
In many ways, our experience with beliefs mirrors this road trip without GPS or a map. We often grapple with the challenge of navigating our beliefs, a process that can be arduous, frustrating, and time-consuming.
Navigating belief systems without a roadmap — without GPS—can take a long, long time. What if you had a roadmap for the journey? What if you had GPS for navigating your belief voyage? GPS to aid you in bypassing the dead-ends, the road blocks, the road construction zones in life’s journey for discovering your beliefs.
The good news is that there is, in fact, a GPS for navigating the belief voyage with clearly marked milestones along the way.
Milestone 1
An interesting study of college students (Magolda, 2001) found that most freshmen in college relied upon belief systems provided by external sources, such as family, friends, churches, and teachers. These are prepackaged belief systems. Margolda referred to this milestone as the Vessel because the person acts as a vessel for holding external beliefs.
The first milestone on the belief journey is always an external belief system. These external definitions of beliefs not only provide information about beliefs, but also validate your success—your success at abiding by the belief system.
For example, in school ‘good’ grades are often valued. A talented actress may be receiving ‘D’s’ in mathematics. The school belief system may invalidate her success as an actress because math is more highly valued. In fact, if her grades are too low, she may be prevented from trying out for the school play.
Initially, external belief systems are convenient because it is like fast-food, prepackaged and already prepared for you. Just go through the drive-up and pick it up.
Rules are safe. There is a right and a wrong. Good and bad. Black and white. This simplistic view of life can feel comforting because it is not confusing.
There can be security in external belief systems as well. You are not the only one who believes something. There are others who hold the same beliefs. So you can be secure you are not alone. This provides a connection, which is something that we as humans all seem to seek, a connection to other people.
REFLECTION
Reflect upon beliefs that you currently hold that were derived from an external belief system, such as parents or schools.
Reflect upon beliefs that you see others hold that are based upon an external belief system.