Episode 210: The Power of Belief and Groupthink

Beliefs are thoughts we have taken seriously over time, so that they appear increasingly less malleable and come to look like truths to us.  They take on power in our minds.  When a group of people share certain beliefs, they drive actions, both good and bad — for example, placing service to humanity as a priority, or turning away from certain groups of people they consider not deserving of mercy or compassion.  Once a thought is entrenched in our minds, it can lead to prejudice as well as favoritism, or exclusion of others as well as clinging to identity with certain others.  Groupthink takes us away from seeing the shared humanity at the heart of being, and leads to sorting and separating — or worse, prejudice and even violence.  It keeps us from connection heart-to-heart.