Islamic Life Coach School Podcast
Islamic Life Coach School Podcast
The Power of the C-NEAR Algorithm
Prepare yourself for an enlightening journey as we dismantle the intricate workings of our minds using the C-NEAR algorithm! Ever wonder where our thoughts originate - the higher brain or the lower? Intriguing isn't it? How our circumstances are independent of our nervous systems and how our thoughts create emotions, and the profound impacts they have on our actions.
Ever caught yourself in a juncture where you are constantly stuck in the same pattern of thoughts, cycling between productive and unproductive outcomes? This podcast describes a fascinating simple framework that enables us to break free from inaction.
Let’s explore how we can approach our minds with an attitude of curiosity and compassion. Get ready to be inspired with real-life examples that demonstrate the transformative power of understanding our emotional grid and how this newfound wisdom can restore balance, peace, and positivity in our lives.
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Welcome to Islamic Life Coach School Podcast. Applying tools that you learn in this podcast and your life will be unrecognisably successful. Now your host, dr Kamal Uthar. Hello, hello, hello everyone. Peace and blessings be upon all of you.
Speaker 1:There are very few things in life that make a major impact. I believe learning the algorithm C-near has the most major impact for your life, before you can change it into any direction you want to. I review some of the main teachings through this podcast from time to time, and today is one of those days. By the end of this podcast, you'll have a basic idea of the tools I utilize to help create change. There are algorithms of the social media that can read your preferences even before you become aware of them, and then there is this algorithm C-near that totally changed my life and has the potential to change yours.
Speaker 1:Number one of the C-near algorithm is the C circumstance. These are the events and facts of your life. It includes things you can't control, like past events or other people's behavior, for example, the backyard, the white door. These are circumstances. They remain neutral until you think about them. War is neutral. Death is neutral until your nervous system assigns a thought to these circumstances. Circumstances, by definition, don't have any emotions attached to them. When you think of war, famine, natural disaster and you have some emotion that comes up, that means you're thinking about the fact, you're not just observing the fact as it exists outside of you.
Speaker 1:The next item in the C-near algorithm is the nervous system, for the N Nervous system creates thoughts, and these are sentences in your brain that are produced in response to a circumstance. We experience, according to some studies, about 60,000 thoughts a day. Thoughts can be of positive, negative or neutral energy. They often contain subjective terms or judgments. For example, this happened in my past is a circumstance. This horrible thing happened in my past is a thought. Thoughts are of two origins the higher brain or the lower brain. In Islam, we're told we have four forces acting on our thoughts the nafs and the shaitan, the angels and the soul, while everything is from Allah, including all of the forces that are acting on our thoughts. These are the thoughts that we're meant to take control of.
Speaker 1:The next item in the C-near algorithm is E for emotion. Your emotion stem from your thoughts and are typically distilled into a single word, like joy, sorrow or anxiety. Especially while working through this algorithm, your perceptions of situations dictate your emotional responses, and these emotional responses lie in four quadrants. And imagine splitting it in four little squares. The top right is high energy positive emotions. The bottom right is low energy positive emotions. The top left is high energy negative emotions. And the bottom left is low energy negative emotions. If you google the word emotional grid, a chart of this nature will come up for you. So, depending on what energy you're feeling, that will dictate how you're acting.
Speaker 1:Because emotions are the fuel for human actions, the algorithm prompts you to pinpoint a single thought and an accompanying emotion, and this is done for the sake of effective healing. It makes sense to understand that your lived experiences are much more intricate and nuanced than just one thought and feeling at a time. All thoughts generate a cascade of emotions, complicating our understanding and our clarity in any given instance. This is why the algorithm is designed to zero in on one thought and emotion at a time, because the whole point is to simplify the human experience so you can take charge of it if you want to. If you find yourself experiencing multiple thoughts and emotions at the same time, the interconnectedness becomes evident when one emotion gives rise to another, like fear, giving rise to anger or sadness and spiraling into desolation. An emotion will act as a trigger for the brain to produce more thoughts of similar nature, leading to further emotions, creating a cascade of either positive or negative emotions. If, at any given time, you're trying to make sense of multiple emotions, pick one and put the rest aside. For now, what you realize is, after you've solved for one emotion, the rest of the emotions are the action which are the result of this emotion. This happens to be mental action that you're taking, an action within the brain springing from a primary, most prominent emotion you've identified.
Speaker 1:So let's talk about the next item, which is the. A action, feelings or emotions drive our actions. If we feel caring, we might act kindly, but if we're angry, we might shout. And we just learned that the emotions lie on four quadrant grid and this translates exactly to what the actions will reflect. For example, if you're feeling an emotion on the top right quadrant which is a high energy, positive emotion, like excitement, adventure, energized, thrilled, exhilarated, these types of emotions will fuel high energy, positive actions. If you're experiencing an emotion from the bottom right quadrant which is low energy, positive emotions, like comfortable, peaceful, cozy, balanced, relaxed, serene, then these types of feelings will fuel less visible actions because they're low energy in nature. You don't have as much of a fuel to act upon. The vibration associated with this level of fuel is not high enough to propel you to take visible action, but at the same time it feels really good in your body and you will be enjoying yourself more. Maybe through these emotions of peacefulness, balanced and relaxed, you'll connect with other people more and you will have more tranquility in your worship.
Speaker 1:Then there is the top left corner. That's a high energy negative emotion like furious, enraged, angry, nervous, anxious, troubled, disgusted. The high vibration energy behind this and the intensity of the sensations fuels visible actions, and this emotional state will dictate visible actions like shouting out of rage or banging things out of irritation or making poor choices out of anger. For the most part, these are choices that we later regret, because these are the actions that take us away from connection with people. They move us away from our purpose. Then there is the fourth corner, which is the left lower quadrant, where you are feeling low energy, negative emotions like drained, isolated, lonely, discouraged, pessimistic. And these types of low level emotions fuel no action because they don't have enough energetic fuel behind them to fuel any action. But interestingly, they do fuel more and more brain action, meaning you will mostly be having more and more thoughts and spinning in circles, constantly spending energy about collecting evidence of how things are going wrong and simultaneously rejecting any evidence that goes in your favor. This is all brain action Now.
Speaker 1:Your nervous system mostly your conscious thoughts create your emotions and determine your reactions and behaviors. So it would make sense to change thoughts to create different feelings and different actions. While this relationship between thoughts, emotions and actions is the basic premise of cognitive behavioral therapy, there are multiple therapeutic modalities that consider emotions as the primary target of treatment, which I am completely in agreement with, because a lot of times conscious thoughts are too painful to access. So working at the body's level with emotions is very healing. But what I don't agree with is that when people say to continue to change your actions and your emotions and thoughts will fix themselves, this is the basic fake it till you make it philosophy. Changing your actions, meaning, let's say, walking with a confident posture until you feel confident, or if you are trying to be more physically fit but you can't find motivation, then just go to the gym everyday, putting your sneakers on, and even doing any small activity helps you believe that you are becoming more active. All of this as a premise behind atomic habits taking small action until you collect evidence. Fake it till you make it. In examples like this, the reason changing action gives you evidence that you are changing your thought is because the action becomes the stimulus for the nervous system that you believing your identity is changing. The small action, like putting your shoes at the same time every day, becomes the circumstance. Then the thoughts are that I'm becoming good at this. Fake it till you make it.
Speaker 1:Philosophy is based on thoughts, emotions, actions as a linear relationship. Still, changing actions is effective, but that's because it's changing thoughts behind the scene. You can't escape this design, even if you help yourself at the emotional or behavioural level. To me, a very interesting and important thing to pay attention to is your emotional grid. The level of energy, of fuel that you are acting from is extremely important, because low vibration, negative emotions that lie in the left lower quadrant are not going to fuel any visible action. Mostly, you're going to be in inaction. If you're feeling pessimistic and drained and burned out, then you're not going to have any observable behaviours. You're most likely going to be judging yourself for being in this state, creating more and more self-criticism, creating more evidence why you're just somehow meant to be this way. Low energy, negative emotions create more of a mental strain, and not the good kind, but the kind that weighs you down.
Speaker 1:Also, when I consider behaviour during my coaching sessions and when you consider your own behaviours while you're trying to reflect and apply this algorithm to yourself, you absolutely have to consider what you're admitting to do. What actions are you actually not taking, where you're only taking mental actions and not physical actions? So the point is to ask yourself the question who would I be without this thought? Because it's not easy for the brain to identify what doesn't exist, like the omission of action, but it is easier for the brain to identify what you would be doing if isolation, desperation or self-criticism didn't exist. Okay, last but not least, the results are R and the C near algorithm.
Speaker 1:The actions we take or omit lead to specific results in our lives. For example, consistent emotional overeating will result in weight gain. Consistently putting shoes on and going for a walk will lead to an identity of a person who's dedicated to creating more fitness. The most revealing part of the work is that the result will prove the thoughts correct. Whatever thoughts you're thinking will create the results. That proves the thought correct, which becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, a never-ending cycle that the brain gets stuck in this level of manifestation and the power of creation is what human being is given by Allah swt.
Speaker 1:This is the very basic reason why I emphasize coaching the conscious mind. Like I said, I'm all about understanding the behaviors and changing the behaviors. I'm all about feeling the emotions and making space for them and having a profound, deep body knowledge. I'm all about increasing your emotional intelligence, because the cycle that your body is stuck in will not break if you don't know how to create emotional safety for yourself and you'll continue to go down. More and more negative thoughts spiral that provide more and more evidence for your future incompetence. While all of that work is valid and I closely integrate that into my coaching if you don't take control of your conscious thoughts, if you don't make an effort to change what you're thinking, these cycles will continue to recreate themselves and soon enough you'll find yourself doing the same body-based and behavior-based work over and over again.
Speaker 1:You have to learn how to take conscious control of your thoughts, being aware of them and directing them at your will, applying the C-NEAR model whenever we encounter a situation, or a thought or a feeling, we categorize it within the C NEAR model. For example, I keep procrastinating is an action. I'm worthless is a thought, even though it might sound factual I'm overwhelmed. As an emotion it's 11 pm. In the circumstance, this systemic approach provides a clear framework to interpret experiences and challenges, making them more comprehensible, more approachable, makes the complex science of self-improvement very, very simplistic and simple, as what creates change Over time. While you're continuing to implement these skills, your comprehension of your feelings and behaviors will improve and improved outcomes will manifest in your life. So now for taking some real-life examples.
Speaker 1:Circumstance my friends are going out for a day of shopping. Nervous system thought it's fun to buy new things. Emotion, desire, action. Go on a shopping spree, spend more than my budget, lose track of time. I create financial stress and mismanage my money while constantly stressing out about shopping and how much I will regret this later. I don't see how the short-term gratification of this desire will hurt my long-term goals. Result Buying new things remains fun. Notice how the result will always prove the thought correct that buying new things is fun. This is because brain has very conveniently omitted how buying new things and not honoring the budget will actually hurt you in the long run. And also notice the high energy state of desire as an emotion when you think it's fun to buy new things. That will actually fuel visible actions.
Speaker 1:Next example Circumstance it's raining. I left my car windows open. Nervous system thought my luck is always so terrible. Emotion, despair Sit and watch the rain, complain about the wet cushions and ruin paperwork. Feel drain, thinking of all of the cleaning up I have to do. I don't move quickly to salvage what I can. Result my proof of being unlucky continues to persist. Notice how the result proves the thought correct and notice how the low energy emotion of despair only mostly fuels inaction and more and more brain action. Now approaching this with contrasting examples, just changing how we think about the circumstance.
Speaker 1:Circumstance Offer for a new project with overtime and higher pay. Nervous system thought the extra money is tempting. Emotion, temptation, action Accept the project, work overtime consistently, neglect personal time, relationships, spirituality. I create no time to use the extra money, but I don't see how this actually hurting me Result the money remains tempting. Now consider the same situation Offer of a new project with overtime and higher pay. Nervous system thought my well-being is priceless. Emotion, self-confident Action Politely decline the offer or negotiate terms. Where I can have a work-life balance, nurture my spiritual and personal growth, I create harmony in my life that is not defined by my income Result. My well-being remains priceless to me.
Speaker 1:I hope this reveals the grand importance of monitoring your thoughts. Most people don't pay attention to their thoughts because it requires effort. Monitoring your thoughts might feel like using one part of your brain to watch the other Requires time and energy. But this is everything, because your mind is the vehicle that creates everything in your life. So once you understand this ability to master your mind, why would you ever leave the mind on autopilot? And that is beyond me. Because if left unchecked, your mind operates by default. Default is the toddler mind Because for most of us, our default old patterns are unproductive and continue to be recycled. Just a quick review Every situation in life we encounter can be categorized in one of the five categories of the C-Near model.
Speaker 1:For instance, if you get laid from a job, this is a factual situation or a circumstance. Your feelings about this aren't caused directly by the situation, but by the thoughts about it, and you might be thinking it's horrible that I got laid off from my job or it's a great opportunity to start something new. While one might feel it's the end of the world, the other one will give you more opportunities, all depending on what you think about the situation, and that will lead for you to feel a certain way, which will then drive your action. So positive thoughts will inspire you to take proactive steps, while negative thoughts will lead you to inaction. Your thoughts about a circumstance lead to feelings. These feelings then influence your actions or inactions, and a cumulative effect of these actions is that they produce results in your life. These results reinforce the initial thought, creating a loop, and by understanding this pattern, you can trace back unwanted results to the thoughts that cause them and change them to create more immediate, effective results. During this work, it is normal that you might find thoughts that you are not really fond of, and this isn't a bad sign. It's actually a golden opportunity to make positive change.
Speaker 1:So approach your mind with curiosity and compassion. Follow the algorithm, and it will help you make sense of your life. Why are you taking action? Why are you failing to take action and behaving opposite to what you actually want to do, and you think tiktok, instagram and facebook has the algorithms figured out? Wait till you practice your mind's algorithm and you'll start to see instant results in your life. There is only one algorithm to master, and that's the algorithm of your mind. With that I pray to Allah SWT. Ya Allah the most merciful, guide me to the importance of monitoring my thoughts. Guide me to harness the power that you've placed in me effectively. Protect me from heedlessness and drifting into old patterns. Illuminate my heart, o Allah, to see the lessons and opportunities in each circumstance, and grab me the wisdom to harness my mind's power. O Allah, only you can give us the clarity to refine our thoughts so we may walk the straight path that reflects our potential you've placed within each of us. Ameen, ya Rabbul Alameen, please keep me in your doors. I'll talk to you guys next time.