You and I are the hottest commodity on the market today. Between our time, energy, attention, and dollars, everyone wants a piece of us.
We’re inundated with information. Never in the history of the world has so much information been funneled to us as it is today on a near-constant basis.
Here’s something people don’t typically account for—how the information we consume interacts with and impacts our subconscious mind. We all need to be aware of this when consuming business and news media communication (and political communication, but that’s another post for another day) because advertising and public relations agencies are specialists in crafting messages that target the subconscious mind.
Before we get into that, you may be wondering—what is the subconscious mind? We have both a conscious and subconscious mind.
Our conscious mind is the part of us that’s actively aware of how we process information, our perceptions, and how we make decisions and make sense of the world. It’s 5-10 percent of our mind.
Our subconscious mind is the part of us that functions outside of our conscious awareness and is 90-95 percent of our mind. It contains our deepest-held belief systems, values, memories, and unresolved emotions, all of which influence our thoughts, perceptions, and behaviour without us realizing it.
The subconscious mind is highly symbolic and is programmed by repetition. It doesn’t know the difference between reality and non-reality. This is key when consuming business and news media communication for the following reasons:
- Advertisements rely on symbols to create an emotional connection with customers and activate a reaction (e.g., fear of missing out leads to impulse buying).
- Public relations campaigns develop key messages that are repeated to craft narratives that over time form views about people, events, and institutions.
As entrepreneurs, more than likely we’ve been taught subconscious tactics for interacting with our clientele. It’s not a bad thing per se, but one to be aware of, so we ensure our communications are aligned with integrity.
Here are a few key questions you’ll want to ask yourself for further reflection:
- How might the business and news media communication I’m consuming impacting me and my behaviour?
- How can I bring more awareness to the communication I’m consuming so that it supports my growth and success?
- How can I ensure my communication with my clients is based in integrity and service?
Awareness is the first step to making the subconscious conscious. I recently led an event that dove into the details of subconscious tactics used in politics, business, and news media communications, which I invite you to check out here. May its insights and the information in this article help you navigate complex times in communication.
Submitted by:
Fazeena Haniff is a leadership and communication trainer, speaker, and coach. She applies a holistic approach to her teachings that gets clients looking at leadership and communication problems from unconventional angles that challenge the status quo. You can learn more about Fazeena at www.theconsciouscommunicator.ca or follow her @theconsciouscommunicator on Instagram.