One prisoner can look at the walls enclosing him and declare the world a hostile and predatory place, the other has been given the time and space he needs and sees the universe as friendly. Barry chooses to see that such a user-friendly, responsive universe must certainly support a pursuit of happiness. Barry refers to those that have gone through The Option Process as 'attitudinal pioneers' and stresses that an openness to their, and our, current state is as important as the willingness to see it change. When we greet people's discomforts and self-incrimination with an attitude of love and acceptance, they tend to relax their guard and begin the process of unearthing the beliefs that have fuelled their unhappiness. Their struggle becomes a dance.
Judgements melt away.
They develop a sense of inner peace. This allows researchers to create computer-generated color graphics of the brain in action. The results showed that the left brain became extraordinarily active when subjects watched photographs that stimulated happiness and comfort whereas the right brain became engaged when watching scenes that generated fear, anxiety and discomfort. Certainly the methods employed at The Option Institute may sound simple. Awareness, truth and acceptance also sound simple.