Presenting new ideas is more than selling. While the factors involved are endless, life likes to remind me that they are two that are in the center. They are trust and desire. In order to believe, one must trust the source of the belief. Additionally, they must want to believe. To have a need is not enough. If situations dictate, making the adoption of an idea or fact a must, the outcome is many things. However, belief is not automatically one of them.
In my experience, belief often found itself as an outcome. Embedded belief was rarely discussed. Infused belief was off limits. The goal was to land a fact, figure, or idea on someone. If it stuck, if only for a while, belief was declared and the celebration started.
I have come to see belief as something quite different. It is never an outcome, although it can be a result. Belief is a state of being that reveals itself to others through actions and embraced priorities.
As I see belief emerging around me, I realize that belief is something that one chooses. It helps when I trust the source. It is easier to embrace when I am open to experiencing what it means. When another believes, to the giver the belief that shows itself in action leads to a mutually giving of hope.
Having witnessed the early adoption of new beliefs, I find myself growing quieter and more aware of the Source of Truth. For every great idea I have given others, in my heart and the darkness of the night, I know it came from somewhere else. My part of the process was in seeing, embracing, and then living out the belief. As others experience what I initially experienced, the opportunity for belief emerges. It is a mutual process – learning from the Other, sharing in return.
Some take solace of how others, in “the moment they got wind of me they listened.” (Psalm 18.44) I know that I was not the Source. The fact we have helped each other is a reason for celebration.
