PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT WITH EASE
Watch concept introduction
The Concept in a nutshell
At its core, the concept is using what modern marketing does. It makes use of subconscious stimulation to let a human or a group of humans take action without being stopped by too high barriers. The difference is, that it lets people choose the stimuli which let them take action. With that, resulting actions are in the favour of the individuals rather than of organisations interested in selling. Actions that will gradually increase life satisfaction.
Key Takeaways
People (also you) behave most of their time unconsciously. This behaviour is triggered by stimuli, causing a RE-action (response) rather than action. Responding is to a certain degree inevitable in our lives.
In modern society which is driven by strong economic interests, companies and other organisations make use of this to control individuals and populations. One leading discipline in that is marketing, laying out “customer journeys” through placing strategic stimuli along the way of a targeted individual until he takes the final action to click, to buy or to promote.
Understanding what stimulates us and what interest lies behind, gives us a chance to say No and cut out the influence by putting ourselves in different situations.
We can use the mechanism of responding through stimuli in our interest by creating a "customer journey" for ourselves. In doing so, we only consciously select the environment (place, people, space, apps, movies, etc.) we oppose ourselves to, and then surrender to their influence without too much active effort, knowing we will eventually take action - yet this time in our favour.
Control what controls you
Christian Schnepf - 2022.09. (Reading time 5 minutes)
The issue today
Why does it seem that life’s getting constantly harder while we get less and less healthy? One (major) reason is the objective in modern economy of growth. Particulary growth of profit. For that, over 70 billion US Dollars are annually spent in the global economy to research how people can be influenced to take purchase actions. Yet, while companies puruse their objective, the objective of individuals to increase their life satisfaction is heavily sacrificed. The answer to the question of how to actually increase life satisfaction sustainably appears for more and more people to be that it is not possible. And while economical efforts promote a bright future, the trend in the reality for most people points towards evermore darker days. Especially younger generations (Millenials and Generation Z (but not only)) are hit hard. Increasing numbers of anxiety disorders, lack of motivation in any life aspect, obesity, and in its worst suicide, are consequences, to name a few.
One clear answer to the question of what changed compared to previous generations is the stimuli that people have to deal with today. In other words, oftentimes tiny influences, trigger us to behave in a certain way.
While life was always an up and down between high times and low times (Figure 1), the development for those of us who surrender to today’s influences is, that over time, the highs last shorter and reach lower peaks, while the lows last longer and go deeper (Figure 2).
Figure 1 - Common life flow
Figure 2 - Life flow with destructive stimuli in place
What to do?
Know the stimuli
If it’s for us as individuals, we first have to be aware of the existence of stimuli in our lives. This short article is a first attempt to bring it to you as the reader and to those you share it with. But beyond knowing that we’re influenced subconsciously, it counts to understand what triggers us. With my work, I share from time to time generally known stimuli, but we can find the stimuli in our own lives by sharpening our awareness during our days.
When we do something, we can hold in for a moment and ask ourselves, what stimulated us to do that? Was it really our own will with a clear and conscious decision to act, or was it just a response to something? We can then analyze which of our responses let us end up in a situation we wanted to be in, which we didn’t, and which stimuli were lying behind which response.
For example, it’s 9 pm and we grab our smartphone and scroll through our favourite video app for the next 3 hours, causing us to postpone our sleep. What made us take out the smartphone in the first place? What stimulated us to take it out? What stimulated us to open the app? What stimulated us not to close it earlier? On the other hand, we go to the gym and start our workout. What stimulated us to grab our sports clothes? What stimulated us to put our headphones in? What stimulated us to start moving?
Choose and trade the stimuli
After being aware of our stimuli and which one caused a response that results in a situation we want to be in and which one we don’t, we start to be conscious and can look for alternative stimuli of those who let us respond unfavourably. Replace the stimuli and we most likely change our response. The more we trade unfavourable stimuli with favourable stimuli, the easier it gets and momentum upwards gets built. (Figure 3). We can create then consciously a surrounding (including physical surroundings, social surroundings such as friends and colleagues, work surroundings, etc.) which lets us automatically respond favourably by eliminating or trading destructive influencing stimuli and placing constructive influencing stimuli strategically.
Figure 3 - Life flow with constructive stimuli in place
Be part of our community to transform our lives to the ones we consciously love living
I am highly interested in what stimulates you to do what. But not only me, but others too. By sharing your insights with me (anonymously if you want), you help to build a database of constructive and destructive simuli which we will share. With that we can learn from each other and together trade our stimuli with those who help us create the lives we love living.
Write me a message with your experience and your insights. I - WE - love to hear from you. Thank you <3
Who is behind?
The concept is part of a broader research. The research was originally initiated by Christian Schnepf and got back-upped and partly funded by the Shanghai Government. The Shanghai University, with its world-leading faculty in sociology and humanity, serves as the major research institution. In collaboration with other international universities, further studies and tests get conducted across the globe, while partnerships with organizations provide a ground for result testing in the work environments as well as support through expertise, planning, and funding. In addition, professionals in diverse fields, professors, students, and otherwise engaged individuals, drive the research. Supporters are always welcome, so we invite you warmly to connect with us if you want to pe part of it.
