Introspective Explorations of Symmathesy

These explorations can be done as you go about your everyday, and maybe during some breaks in the action. You just have to remember to pay attention, whenever you can. And, once you begin paying attention and getting glimpses of symmathesy, you may find that particular symmathesetic events will start “reminding” you. REMEMBER that symmathesy mostly occurs below our “radar.” We are not usually aware of when or how it is occurring, even though it is operating all of the time.

Calibration

• As you talk with someone you do not know, climb stairs, walk especially over uneven terrain, ride a bike, or drive in different or intense situations, try to notice how you make adjustments.
• Am I adjusting my balance?
• Am I adjusting how I talk to this new person? Am I adjusting my body language?
• Am I adjusting how I negotiate moving — walking, running, biking, driving — in differing conditions?
• If you have any particular fears — of dogs, spiders, heights, closed in spaces, etc. — how are you making psychological adjustments when you encounter such fears?

Context

• Try to notice what happens when you move from one context to another, such  as from your workplace to a coffee shop or restaurant, from your car or other mode of transportation to your home, from intently doing one activity to getting into a conflict with someone, or from doing any kind of activity then getting a phone call from someone unexpected.
• How do you feel in one context vs the next and during the transition?
• What sorts of emotions and other feelings do you notice in the transition?
• What sorts of changes occur in the way you respond to different contexts and to the transitions?

Bias

• If you are walking or sitting in an area where a lot of people are moving by, try to notice how you react to each person as they approach and move past you?
• Do you notice any sort of impulsive reaction or thoughts that pop up in reaction to these people? Are you attracted, repulsed, or have no particular reaction? Do you feel like you want to avoid or ignore certain people? Do you notice yourself making immediate judgments about people?
• Watch for the same sorts of reactions as you enter new contexts, encounter situations that you fear or dislike. 
• Biases can act as filters. We may not even notice certain things, while we focus more intently on other things. Can you notice such differences in what you focus on in different settings?

Boundaries

• Boundaries or borders are often fuzzy and not well-defined, as well as not often visible. In addition, they are often the contact points between contexts. When you, a context in itself, meet someone else or enter a new context, the boundaries of these contexts “rub up” against one another. 
• If you take public transportation, enter crowded elevators, or walk or stand in other crowded situations, how do you feel and react others in close proximity? Do you change where you are “looking?” Do you face in a different direction?
• In any kind of social situation, do you feel differently when people are at varying distances from you — one foot or 30 centimeters away, a yard or meter away, 3 yards or 3 meters away, and 10 yards or meters away? 
• Try doing this activity with different people, such as a close friend or someone you know from work, but who is not a close friend. Stand about 10 meters or yards away from one another. One of you should talk to the other about anything —  what they or you did last night or what you or they want to do in the future — the very slowly walk towards the other person. Each of you should take note of how you feel at different distances, as well as take note of your body language and body movements. Try to keep the “moving towards the other” going to almost at contact. How did you feel at different distances, such as those mentioned in the previous point? How did your body language change? Was there a difference in how you felt with a close friend or partner vs. the acquaintance? 

Stochastic Processes

• Stochastic processes are random processes, or processes that generate random output of some kind.
• One common random process is that of our discursive thinking that occurs whenever there is a lull in the action. So, if we are not engaging in focused thinking and just sitting, walking, and often even when reading, we may notice this endless stream of random thoughts. We may follow one line of thinking, then all of a sudden a random line of thinking pops up. If you are walking or doing some other physical type of activity, trying just paying attention to your breathing, your walking, and whatever you see and hear around you. How long can you keep that focus before everything “blurs” out and we find ourselves thinking about something?
• This sort of filler stochastic process may provide some creative insights, but more often than not, it is just filler.
• However, there are other situations where a random idea pops up that may be of some interest to whatever we are doing. I used to do a lot of computer programming, and seemingly on a regular basis would encounter a sticky problem I could not solve. Then, in the middle of doing some other activity or when falling asleep, a possible solution to the problem would pop up. Have you had similar experiences with any kind of situation?
• Trying keeping track of random ideas, beyond those that are “fillers,” that have some potentiality for being interesting, useful, or whatever….. a story idea? a design idea? a cooking idea? When and in what context did these random ideas pop up?

Play

• In addition to what we may do to play intentionally, watch for times when you find yourself playing with an idea, with objects in your life, or in the way you interact with  others.
• Watch for times when you find yourself playing, which could be making spontaneous jokes or teasing others, or playing with objects or ideas.
• How does such playing around affect your thinking or your relationships with others?

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