Thread: Question about belief in LD’ing

Thanks, Sageous, that really helps!

Originally Posted by Sageous

I think the best answer for this is sort of a catch-22: the best way to have full belief that you can LD is by successfully having a few LD's. With experience comes the sense that it is obvious you can LD (because you did), so 100% belief that you can LD tonight is certainly achievable... and as experience piles up, you will eventually be able to believe with confidence that you will LD tonight.

You can also tap that belief even during dry spells: because you LD'd in your past, you can go to bed with confidence that "tonight" you will LD because you already know you can do it; it seems to me that conjuring that kind of belief is just as easy as being negative about it (i.e., "hoping" you might LD tonight, or, worse, being sure you won't LD tonight).

Now this does make sense. Thus far, I have managed to accumulate around 30 LD’s, so I’m pretty sure I can do it, I guess it’s just that confidently knowing that I can LD on any given night goes a little beyond my “can do” capacity (at the moment at least). But I can definitely see how experience of having LD’s could add to this, increasing your self-efficacy and genuine belief -- just like with anything in waking-life perhaps.

But that’s certainly something to think about -- knowing that I have had LD’s in the past so I must be able to do it again (I don’t know why I didn’t think of that before ). It’s probably best to wield genuine confidence in light of having achieved those LD’s rather than create a falsehood that I can LD all the time, as I’m most likely not at that level yet. My subconscious tends to see right through it anyway!