Making the invisible visible

What does it mean to get underneath the stories we’re telling ourselves?

To take a core sample of what’s going on deep within our inner lives — and discover the beliefs and assumptions that shape the lives we lead and the actions we take?

In this article, we explore why becoming aware of both the beliefs we have and the beliefs that have us can be a potent catalyst for our ongoing development and transformation.

Kegan’s research suggests we have beliefs that we are subject to, and we have beliefs we can use as an object.

The beliefs we are subject to are invisible to us. They are the lens we use to view the world. They are the beliefs we are had by. Whereas the beliefs we have as an object are visible to us. We can look at them, play with them and take a perspective on them. They are beliefs we can make conscious choices about how and why we use them.

If we want to be able to get underneath the stories we’re telling ourselves, then the challenge we face is how we can shift what we are subject to, and make it an object we can take a perspective on.

An example of a subject object shift is a fish who is able to leave the water and take a perspective on it. Most fish are subject to the water. It’s invisible to them. They are fully immersed in it. However, some fish have learnt how to leave the water and looked back upon it by standing on a shore, or by growing wings and flying out of it into the air. The ability to take a perspective on the water means the fish can make conscious choices about how and why they interact with it.

A human example is how most of us evolve through a period in our childhood when we are subject to our primal impulses. As we mature, we learn how to take a perspective on our impulses which enables us to consciously choose how we want to use them as an object.

This is the essence of making subject object shifts. It’s our capacity to take a perspective on something and make conscious choices about them.

Very simply, because we can’t change what we don’t notice.

Subject object moves are how we develop, evolve and transform ourselves as human beings. It’s how we make transformative leaps in our capacity for understanding, meaning making and awareness. It’s vital work for overcoming our blind spots and for our capacity to see ourselves and the world with new eyes.

At the Benefit Mindset project, we think giving people the time and safe space to do this deeply human work is essential if we want to shape a healthy and resilient future.

If you have any reflections you’d like to share, we’d love to hear from you in the comments below.

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