Mindworks Coaching Montreal

Your Movie Mind

Get your ticket, some popcorn, a soft drink and get ready… to step into the theater of your mind.

Your mind is like a cinema. On your inner big screen you flash images, scenarios, snippets of stories and even epic films. Every day, in the private theater we call the “mind,” you play all kinds of movies. You can see the action, hear what’s going on and often you can even feel it. It’s as if you are right there in the movie. Your vast internal world drives your experience because the quality of your life is a function of the kinds of movies you play.

When it comes to cinema, we all have different tastes and there are so many choices. There are comedies and love stories, dramas and musicals. There are thrillers, action and adventure flicks, horror films and science fiction. There are documentaries, foreign films and the list goes on. We go to the movies to be whisked away into another world, to be thrilled, inspired, educated and most of all, to be entertained.

But not so with the movies in our minds. Many people play B-rated movies. They run them again and again and wonder why they feel so dull. They make sure to sit real close to the screen so they can get their money’s worth. Often they should just walk out because the movie is so bad, but these people feel the need to finish what they start.

Many people play the worry movie. They sit attentively in the theater captivated by frame after frame of “what ifs” and watching all the worst things that can happen. They make sure they are in an Imax theater with Dolby digital surround sound for maximum effect. But that one hasn’t been getting good reviews.

Some people play movies of the past, again and again. They pick out the most unpleasant events from months, years and sometimes decades ago and view them time after time with impeccable concentration. There are subtitles to this one- “This is part of who you are,” “You can’t escape me.” If you are going to watch a movie from way back when over and over again, wouldn’t it be a better idea to replay a sensational one?

Then there are those who play the fear movie. They run the film of their worst fears in full Technicolor and add a suspenseful soundtrack. Often they add commentary- a frightened voice that details the events of the movie. The commentary is important because without it, the fear wouldn’t be as intense. The worst thing you can do when you watch the fear movie is turn off the sound because you might start to feel calm or courageous. Those who watch fear movies like to add something very special… they like to step inside the movie so they can experience it fully. After all, why just watch when you can really be there and experience it?

Some people’s theaters are out of date. They run their movies in black and white, immersed in dark and gloomy pictures and play a dismal soundtrack. This is the depression movie. They leave it running all day long and forget to turn it off at night so that when they wake up in the morning, it’s still playing. They wonder why life is full of gloom and they don’t understand why no one else wants to cuddle up to watch that one.

Some of us play action flicks that get the heart pumping and the adrenaline flowing at the wrong time of day, like bedtime. We call this the insomnia movie. I don’t recommend that one.
Many want greater success but don’t seem to be able to make anything happen. They are playing boring movies on little screens. These are the kind of movies we tend to walk out of because we were hoping for something much more thrilling. After all, if the movie is of your future, shouldn’t it be a blockbuster?

In our movie-watching compulsion, we forget that it’s our movie mind and that we can simply go up into the projector booth and change the reel whenever we want. Better yet, we can become the director of our movies, creating, editing, and producing them in any way we choose. We can step back and review the film and if it’s not getting a thumbs up, we can yell, “Cut!” and choose a brand-new screenplay. We can turn the distressing movies we play into smash hits that make our lives better and propel us to new levels of happiness and empowerment. Are you ready for Hollywood?

There are so many different movies we could watch. If I could peak into the theater of your mind what would I see? Would I see painful and disturbing scenarios that you would never invite a friend to watch? Would I see dull and boring sequences that you couldn’t even pay someone to go see? Or would I see thrilling pictures that empower and enliven and hits that are getting rave reviews?