Navigating Iceberg Beliefs: How Our Perspectives and Performances are Shaped Below The Surface.

Dr. Sigmund Freud once said that,

The mind is like an iceberg; it floats with one-seventh of its bulk above water.

He was using an iceberg metaphor to describe the conscious and subconscious mind. While science still doesn't know where consciousness comes from, we know most of our thinking and brain patterns are below the surface of our awareness. So, how do we account for the other 6/7 below the surface?

The purpose of this article is to use this same iceberg metaphor to describe human behavior visually. Specifically the link between character and performance through the two critical human factors of values and beliefs that shape our decisions, happiness, fulfillment, and well-being.

Let’s start with the tip of the iceberg or the 1/7 above the surface. These are the behaviors or what we do and don't do that other people see. The other surface dweller is our performance based on the outcomes or results of our behaviors. Performance is usually measured through tangible and quantifiable results like KPIs, getting a raise, closing a deal, making a sales quota, winning a game, etc.? Performance can also be qualified as an experience of satisfaction, joy, happiness, or euphoria.

Since humans are social by nature and life is a team sport, we also see and rely upon relationships beyond ourselves to accomplish our goals. This includes casual interactions, intentional collaboration, and support for family, friends, colleagues, team, and organization.

Let's take a deep dive below the surface. Notice that our character is at the bottom of our iceberg, at the core of our identity or who we are. Character is one of the most important and misunderstood concepts explored through behavioral science, primarily studied in psychology. It shapes how we make decisions and, ultimately, who we become.

Character is a combination of our values, beliefs, and purpose that make up our identity.

Our values are the ‘first principles’ that matter most to us and serve as a foundation for our character. Your purpose includes your ‘why’ or reason for being (Macro) and doing (micro). To determine your core values, we recommend using James Clear’s list on his website here and taking the Values in Action Character Strength Survey here . We also recommend choosing three to five core values and ranking them based on importance or priority. We've found that if every value is a priority, then nothing is a priority.

Beliefs are the lens through which you see yourself, others, and the world around you.

Using another metaphor, think of your beliefs as a pair of prescription glasses uniquely suited to you. The frames that support your lenses are your values. Your prescription lenses are the transparent beliefs that shape your perception, how you see inside and outside yourself, and your perspective of how you interpret, make sense, and understand what you see and experience.

SO WHAT

Our belief system is shaped by a variety of factors, including our genetics, our environment, how we were raised, our education, training, and life experiences. Beliefs are personal and potent. They’re constantly working in the background of our unconscious minds, shaping and driving our mind-body connection closer to the iceberg’s surface. The mind-body connection, or the Thought Performance Relationship, includes our motivations (drivers), thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that ultimately affect our performances and relationships.

From an individual perspective, beliefs can both help and hurt us. Take the core value of Trust. One leader may believe that ‘people are untrustworthy’ or that ‘trust is earned and not given.’ This belief is limiting because it creates a perspective and avoidance approach to trust that may prevent them from empowering others, delegating tasks, and developing meaningful relationships.

Another leader may believe that trust is more of a loan with terms that are given with terms and expectations. This belief can create a different perspective and approach to trust that multiplies a team’s trustworthiness and social and task cohesion. If you’re wondering which approach is more scientifically based,? Dr. Paul Zak’s seminal work on The Neuroscience of Trust is the more effective way to build trustworthiness.

From a global perspective, shared beliefs can help and hurt teams, societies, and the human race. Consider historical examples like the Holocaust and current world events in the war between Israel and Palestine. Shared beliefs are a force that can bring out the best in us for unity, peace, and liberation. Conversely, beliefs can also drive us apart, leading to conflict, oppression, and destruction. ? ?

Some anthropologists theorize that our brains’ belief system evolved as a species to help us understand what happened in nature and explain the unknown. This helped our ancient ancestors understand routine season changes, sunrise and sunset, and more significant life questions like what happens when we die.

Neurologically, this is essential for survival since our brains consume up to 30% of our daily caloric expenditure. To conserve energy, our belief system helps us with mental shortcuts called heuristics that help us fill gaps in knowledge and make decisions more efficiently. For more information on how heuristics affect our decision-making, we recommend you check our Human Behavior Pattern Recognition and Analysis (HPPRA) by our friends Greg Williams and Brian Marren with Arcadia Cognerati .

Over the past 2K years, human innovation has progressed exponentially faster than our brains in 100K years. So, the ability to believe in things that aren’t easily explained gave birth to world religions and many of the time-honored stories and rituals passed on for millennia.

Beliefs and the ability to believe do not require facts or logic; they can become our truth. For example, we believe in Santa Claus, Big Foot, and Aliens despite limited to no evidence that they exist or, in some cases, don't exist. Right now, you’re likely accessing your belief system to choose sides. Am I a believer or nonbeliever?

Part of why we believe in this phenomenon without facts is best explained through psychological concepts like cognitive dissonance and cognitive biases. The latter entered the mainstream through the best-selling book Thinking Fast and Slow by Nobel Prize recipient Daniel Kahneman.

Interestingly, many people can easily believe in things beyond themselves but sometimes have difficulty believing in themselves. The number one reason clients come to us for help is challenges with self-efficacy or a fundamental belief in themselves. Thanks to our understanding of neuroplasticity, our brains, and belief systems are not fixed as we previously thought. Neuroscience suggests that our brains are plastic and malleable, meaning our neural connections can change over our lifetime. Using neuro-literacy, we can understand and change our brains and beliefs, starting with how we think and act.

NOW WHAT

Back to the iceberg analogy…

It all starts with self-awareness. The more we become aware of our iceberg beliefs, the more we understand why we anticipate, react, and respond the way we do, and the more power we will have to react appropriately, resiliently, and productively.

You can try this approach based on the work of our friend and colleague Dr. Karen Reivich, featured in her best-selling book The Resilience Factor.

To start spotting your icebergs, remember the last time you felt your reaction wasn’t commensurate with the event that elicited it. Perhaps it was a time when you were not living your core values.

Then, ask yourself questions to understand why you thought, felt, and acted as you did.

Then, could you reflect on a time when your response aligned with your core values? When you perform optimally and productively, what iceberg beliefs contribute to this response?

It helps to do this exercise in a journal note-taking device or your preferred applications software and talk about it with someone you’re close to and trust.

Detecting Productive and Counterproductive Iceberg Beliefs using WHAT questions:

• What does that mean to me?
• What is the most upsetting/fulfilling part of that for me?
• What is the worst/best part of that for me?
• What does that say about me?
• What does that say about how I treat others?
• What’s so bad/good about that?

Capture and reflect on three productive beliefs based on your core values and do the same for the counterproductive beliefs.

When you’re complete, discuss at least one productive and one counterproductive belief with someone you’re close to that you can share without judgment.

When you’re complete, reflect on what you learned about your beliefs and the beliefs of others.

CLOSING THOUGHTS

In summary, character and performance are linked through our values and belief systems that shape our decisions and performances in various life areas. By bringing your values and beliefs closer to the surface of your consciousness, you can develop your character. When we live with high character, our work, play, and social connections can lead to a more fulfilling and happy life.?Keep training your brain to lead, grow, and win from within.

See you in the arena! ?

About the author:

US Army Lt Col (Ret) Andy Riise is a Mental Fitness and Leadership speaker, author, coach, and content creator for Design to Perform LLC . He's considered an expert in the Psychology of Leadership, Resilience, and Human Performance. He currently works with performers, leaders, and teams in sports, business, first responders, and healthcare through O2X Human Performance , N2Growth , and the National Football League (NFL)