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The power of framing and why it matters

What is framing?

Framing theory is about communication and how we create meaning in our communications.

Framing is about how we define context, make associations, establish reference points and emotional contact points, all designed and positioned to convey the meaning and meaning we want to convey.

An example of this could be how a political party or pressure group asks people if they would approve of allowing far-right groups to hold public events.

Framed in neutral terms, the answer is probably against such approval.

However, if the same question is framed in the context of defending freedom of expression, the answer is likely to shift toward a higher level of approval.

The Power of Framing and the Challenge of the Stoics

In The Stoic Challenge, William Irvine observes:

“… the contribution of the Stoics to psychology is particularly impressive; in fact, the Stoic test strategy is based on their appreciation of a phenomenon that has been rediscovered by modern psychologists, who dubbed it the frame effect “.

How we mentally characterize a situation has a profound impact on how we respond emotionally.

Changing our dominant emotional or energetic state has a profound effect on the positive creations and results we experience, so any change in the way we reformulate a situation will have a significant impact on those creations and results.

The power of framing in our internal dialogue

The word choices we use have power because of the underlying emotional associations they invoke and the actions that result from those associations.

This applies both to our internal dialogue and to the words we use in everyday speech.

This also applies to the unconscious nature of the vast majority of these emotional / energetic associations.

What we are talking about here is the causal link between internal states and external events. We are energetic beings who live in an energetic universe and it is not neutral, it is also a participatory universe.

The internal associations (conscious and unconscious) that we make and the meanings that we attribute to those associations are all based on energy.

By changing the words we use in our internal dialogue to frame an event, a situation, or an experience, we change the underlying energetic state.

This change of energetic state changes the results we create.

So there is a direct causal link between how we think about a situation, the words we use to articulate those thoughts, the energetic state associated with those words, and the results we create.

How to find your unconscious negative self-talk

The best clue that you have useless and useless self-talk inside your head but outside of your awareness is to look closely at your resistance to things.

Think of something you want to have, do, or be. Why don’t you have it? If you say something that is not honest “I know it’s on its way to me“You are probably not clear on the inside of what you want.

Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it destiny.

Examples of the power of reformulation

A personal example

About 15 years ago I had serious financial difficulties with my business that ultimately led to bankruptcy.

Unsurprisingly, this was a difficult time, but I made it much more difficult than necessary because the word “bankruptcy” had such negative connotations and associations for me: powerful and deep associations of failure and shame.

Given the amount of files and documentation required to file for bankruptcy, I had many physical and electronic files and folders titled “Bankruptcy“.

So every time he accessed one of these files he would see the dreaded, horrible, disgusting, disgusting word bankruptcy.

Since he needed to access these files many times a day, he was constantly exposed to these extreme negative reactions.

Finally, it occurred to me to rename these folders and files to “Debt freedom“- words charged with positive and uplifting energy.

The effect on my psychological and emotional state was enormously liberating!

Framing our Covid-19 experiences

The meaning, point and purpose of your experience of the present times is completely whatever you choose to be.

You can allow this time to weaken and diminish and disempower you, OR you can choose to create your own meaning and purpose and use this time to strengthen, refresh and empower yourself. “

How we choose to frame this experience and the words we associate with it can have a great influence on how we cope with it and the effect it has on us.

When is a running of the bulls not a running of the bulls? Answer: When the Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong, addressed the nation on Tuesday (April 21, 2020), he gave an update on the COVID-19 situation in Singapore and refers to what all other countries they call “emergency shutdown“As the”circuit breaker“.

This is a great example of a positive framing of what the rest of us feel as a negative experience.

Here in the UK, like most countries, we call it a lockdown.

However, the term “confinement” has associations of prison and prison life and a lack of individual control; whereas, on the contrary, the term “circuit breaker” implies the positive participation of the group in a collective action to break the control of the virus and this sounds, and feels, much more empowering!

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