Overcoming Learned Helplessness through the Lens of Change

Throughout my master studies Spirituality Mind Body at Columbia University and personal reflections, I've come to appreciate the dynamic nature of human existence. Previously, I was unaware of the flowing state inherent in all of us. This realization has shifted my understanding and brought a profound transformation in how I approach life's challenges.

In the depths of adversity, it's common to feel trapped by circumstances, where the future seems like a mere extension of a dismal now.

This perspective is reminiscent of the psychological concept known as "Learned Helplessness". Developed by psychologist Martin Seligman, learned helplessness occurs when individuals believe they have no control over their situation due to repeated negative experiences. This leads to a passive acceptance of fate and giving up, which can pervade every aspect of life.

There are also experiments involving fleas placed in a jar covered with a glass lid. Initially capable of jumping high enough to escape, the fleas adjusted their jump height to the glass lid. Even after the lid was removed, the fleas continued to jump just short of the jar's rim, now conditioned to the limit they believed was in place. They had learned to be helpless, constrained by an invisible barrier that no longer existed.

This experiment is a powerful metaphor for the psychological barriers we construct around ourselves. Just like the fleas, people often internalize limitations based on past experiences or societal expectations, restricting their potential.

However, if we delve deeper into the philosophy of impermanence, which suggests everything, including our hardships, is ever-changing, a new kind of understanding emerges. Just as the mountain is not the same through centuries—once an ocean, then a plain, and now a peak—so too are our identities and situations continually evolving.

If we accept that nothing about us is fixed and that each day presents a new opportunity to redefine our realities, we can cultivate a mindset that looks for possibilities rather than constraints. Learned hopefulness encourages us to view each challenge as a chance to learn and adapt, promoting resilience and a proactive approach to life.

Bruce Lee’s philosophy also reinforces this concept. He advocated for a form of interaction with the world that is responsive and fluid.

"Empty your mind, be formless. Shapeless, like water. If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle and it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now, water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend," he said, urging us to be adaptable and not rigid, to flow around obstacles rather than crash against them“.

In conclusion, by understanding and embracing the impermanence and continual flow of life, we can overcome learned helplessness. This shift towards learned hopefulness empowers us to reclaim agency in our lives. It is a journey from seeing barriers as permanent to viewing them as temporary challenges that we are equipped to overcome.