Daniel Goleman - Vital Lies, Simple Truths: The Psychology of Self-Deception

Daniel Goleman draws upon a wide variety of evidence from brain function to social dynamics to reveal the ways in which we skew crucial aspects of our lives, of our most intimate relationships, and of our common reality. Everything the mind perceives is sorted, filtered and censored by the unconscious before it reaches awareness, and as much as 99 percent is never even registered. Our blind spots block these perceptions and in so doing offer us a sense of security, but at a psychological cost. The mind actively shields itself from anxiety by twisting attention away from painful truths. Thus, in an effort to avoid anxiety, the unconscious censors information, whether it be perceptions of the moment or distant memories. The result of this filtering is a soothing self-deception which diminishes anxiety--but the price to be paid is a blunted experience of life.