At some point in your life, you’ve probably been up several times during the night, worrying and puzzling over some problem. Once in a while that’s fine – sometimes, the most fabulous ideas flow easily at 3 AM! But if your sleep is being disrupted by constant worrying, or if you have a particularly complex problem that requires focus and out-of-the-box thinking, try the Silva Method’s Glass of Water technique for problem solving. This is a technique so simple, and so effective, that you will never need to wake up in the middle of the night worrying again! The Silva Method is based on the increased function of your brain when you are in the alpha brainwave state of better communication between the two hemispheres; and it releases the stress of worrying about your problem. The Glass of Water engages your own hidden problem-solving capabilities.
The Glass of Water Technique
This is a very simple technique that instructs your subconscious to come up with a solution that your normal waking beta-state logical, linear, time-and-space-bound mind cannot.
The Glass of Water technique is an autosuggestion that stimulates whole-brain creativity. You’ll engage the right brain hemisphere which doesn’t think along the lines of the left brain. In fact, it doesn’t think along any “lines” at all. The right brain is unbound by limits of time or space. It is wildly creative, uninhibited and imaginative. It often comes up with seemingly bizarre solutions that may not be practical – which is why the ideas that come from the right brain tend to get rejected as too “out there.”
The real magic happens when the two hemispheres communicate and work together to solve the problem while you’re sleeping without any conscious objections that you would otherwise offer while awake. Marrying the left-brain practical logic and unconstrained right-brain creativity is what “genius thinking” is all about. Think about it – do the world’s geniuses play by the rules of what is known and accepted as the “truth”? No! They are able to freely tap in to the unconstrained right brain, and take a concept from imagination to physical reality in a way that would automatically be rejected by most people as “impossible.”
The word “impossible” does not exist in the right brain.
Sometimes, all the thinking in the world isn’t going to solve a problem. And all it does is cause a tremendous amount of stress which only makes it more difficult to think clearly. This can be frustrating at best – and it can completely paralyze your thought processes because you come up against one brick wall after another. The Glass of Water technique allows the solution to come to you, because you are putting yourself in a receiving state of mind. You let go of your problem – giving it up to your higher intelligence – and you do not impede the flow of ideas by analyzing them based on what you believe to be true.
How to Use the Glass of Water Technique to Solve a Problem
Fill a glass of water just before you go to bed. While you drink half of the water, close your eyes and turn them slightly upward (toward your “third eye”). This puts you into the alpha brainwave state (which is the key to success with all of the Silva Method exercises). Say to yourself, “This is all I need to do to find the solution to the problem I have in mind.”
And then let the problem go. Quit thinking about it. You’ve given it over to your mind/your higher intelligence to figure out – outside of your conscious thought and the interference of perceived limitations.
What you’ll probably notice is that you’ll get a good night’s sleep, just by having given the responsibility of finding a solution over to your subconscious.
When you wake up, drink the remaining water, and say to yourself as you close your eyes and turn them slightly upward, “This is all I need to do to find the solution to the problem I have in mind.”
During the night, or in the morning, you may find that you’ve dreamed about the answer or received some information about the problem. You may have had a dream or a flash of insight, or you may suddenly become aware of something in your environment that offers a solution – something you would never have thought of or noticed when trying to problem-solve the usual way.
Notice that you’re not telling your mind what to look for. You’re only suggesting that the solution is easily available and then (this is important) you’re getting out of your own way! Don’t forget, a lot of ideas that come spontaneously while you’re in the normal beta brainwave waking state get rejected because they’re too “out there,” too “right-brain la la,” right? But if you allow the left and right hemispheres to communicate freely about this problem as you sleep, you’ll intuitively know that when the solution is presented to you, it is perfect. The right and left brain have come together and found a solution that works. You just feel good about it. The solution is probably outside your “box” but hey, it works!
Reverse-Engineer Your Problem
Another technique to add to the Glass of Water technique is asking your mind to reverse-engineer the problem. You’re going to work backwards, from a successful outcome to the present. Again, take yourself into the alpha brainwave state, and ask yourself, “I wonder how I solved this problem (name the problem) so easily?” And then let it go. Quit worrying about the problem. It’s being handled! Get out of your own way and let your brain do its job.
An extremely important component of this type of problem-solving (giving it up to your higher intelligence) is that you have to believe that the solution exists, and that it is readily available to you. All you have to do is ALLOW IT. If you resist the notion that this is possible, then you’ll have a tough time receiving the solution. If you find yourself resisting the idea, then do these exercises just for fun. After all, you’re already working on the problem, and this method doesn’t cost you any time or conscious mental effort. It’s free. It’s easy. What have you got to lose?
The Silva Method centers around functioning in the alpha brainwave state as the solution to your problems. Intuition, creativity, ideas and solutions flow freely in this uninhibited state of mind. The Glass of Water technique is a great way to access the immense power of your mind and to learn to allow amazingly inventive solutions to come to you!
The word “impossible” does not exist in the right brain.
