What is the Human Computer?

Previously I posted some principles of personal development taught by Coach Homer Rice. A few years ago, at the AFCA Convention, I was given a complimentary copy of the book Leadership Fitness written by Coach Rice as a textbook for the course he taught at Ga Tech. One of the key concepts that Coach Rice focused on in his book is the idea of the "Human Computer".
       " The brain has two minds: the conscious and the subconscious. The conscious mind accepts our thoughts and passes the information on to the subconscious, which records, sorts, and produces our thoughts. I call this the Human Computer because of its similar functions to the manufactured computers we use every day. This process is the key determinant of the actions we will take.......There is a simple secret that makes this computer analogy valuable. By controlling what comes into your conscious mind, you can influence your own actions....The Human Computer accepts as input whatever the conscious mind allows it to receive. Our subconscious does not know the difference between what is real and what is imagined; it only processes the input passed to it.........Give it clean, wholesome, and positive information, and you will act as a person motivated by those traits. Convey this to your team, and they, in turn, will become believers and winners."

I tend to agree with Dr. Rice's belief that we can control our attitude & viewpoints to make ourselves more successful. This is hardly a revolutionary idea;

• The vision that you glorify, the ideal that you enthrone in your heart...this you will build your life by. This you will become (James Allen)
• Man is what he thinks all day long (Ralph Waldo Emerson)
• The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitudes. (William James)
• As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world, as in being able to remake ouselves. (Gandhi)

What I really like about Dr. Rice's "Human Computer" is that it gives us a tangible concept to focus our energies upon. One of my reasons for starting this blog is to provide myself with a focus point each day and to be sure that I am putting the right stuff in my own Human Computer.
Coach W