Making Decisions in XR

Wake up.

For our entire lives, we have been influenced by our extended reality. Stop for a moment and take a look at all of the objects around you. Consider how many of those 10 things were bought or acquired WITHOUT any external influences. Are you certain about that?

One particular example could be brushing your teeth. Toothbrush. Toothpaste. Technique.

Think of the toothpaste you’re using and the toothbrush that you’re using.

How did you choose to acquire those? 

Were they based on recommendations?

Or are they based on an advertisement?

Were they acquired from past experience?

Did you choose them based on price? 

How often is price an illusion of choice?

How often is availability an illusion of choice?

All of the objects that we choose or believe that we chose come from an illusion of choice. We believe that we are making the best choice each time from what is available. How much was learned, influenced, copied, or discovered? Each of these decisions in our extended reality could have been made without thinking. But WHY aren't we thinking about our decisions? 

The following video, "This is EXTREMELY Dangerous to Our Democracy", has been a classic for years.

With this in mind, let's consider three areas to be aware of in our extended reality: Conditioning, Constraints, and Triggers.

Conditioning

With any XR experience, users could be conditioned to achieve a desired outcome. Be careful with how XR experiences use projection, influence, and intuition to the user's benefit or detriment.

Projection

Think about the last 10 thoughts that have been projected into your mind. You can keep convincing yourself that they are your thoughts. Then, you will never know how often you’re projecting your reality into someone else.

"This is extremely dangerous to our democracy." I wonder how many times someone has literally said that without realizing it. Think about the different ways that information can be projected into our minds. Consider how often we project that same information into someone else's mind without realizing it.

Look at how social media feeds have information curated for you. Look at recommendation engines on your favorite apps. Look at machine learning algorithms that sort and process information to give you everything at your fingertips. It's quite fascinating and straightforward to realize the amount of projections that are happening in your extended reality when you uncover or explain how those algorithms work.

An entire dissertation can be written to attempt to explain the ethics behind machine learning algorithms. Humans may attempt not to be biased, but the way they write their code could easily introduce bias. Because if they want a society where information is delivered based on popularity, then they are literally creating a society that might be numerically inaccurate. If society is decided upon by upvotes, downvotes, likes, shares, reactions, and comments, then an entire reality can be easily manufactured. If you do not think that it is a possibility, ask someone about a polarizing topic and TRULY listen. You never know when your entire reality might be shifted upside down in the most beautiful way. Certainly, this many people couldn't get so many things incorrect, right?

‍What do you have to lose? It is your decision to discover actual reality.

Keep in mind that we're also the same society that it has shown to be wrong time and time and time again about actual reality. It is also a society where money can falsely influence actual reality. Applications can have bots, trolls, multiple accounts, or paid influencers to sway public opinion or to project a desired reality into minds. The intentional mind control and brainwashing that occurs on a daily basis across multiple platforms does not encourage people to wake up. After all, why would they want to wake anyone up? Some might realize that they no longer need certain products in life. Take a good look at your food. Look at the water. Look at the games. Look at all of the distractions...

Influence

Let’s say a person does not watch TV. They don’t use social media. They live their life tucked away in a quaint location. However, their close friends or nearby acquaintances are well-versed or well-connected to different aspects of society. They might see their status, their money, and all sorts of external influences. That might lead them to believe that the person has it all together. They might value that person’s opinion slightly more when it comes to other recommendations for important decisions. But some people might not have the humility to admit or say that their knowledge is limited despite their research.

It can be very hard to believe anyone whose only source of research is the mainstream narrative that is literally paid to influence you in a particular direction. When you wake up to this, you will see very clearly that there is a half truth to all of the narratives. All the narratives are there to control one thing: your mind. So, free your mind. The most amazing and incredible thing about you is that you have tremendous and legendary abilities. All you need to do is decide how to remember them.

When we start to look at what influences our extended reality, keep in mind of ALL of the sources that influences it. You might be able to identify five to ten different ones within your phone. Consider the tooth brushing example from above. There could have been two or three different influences in that experience alone.

‍How can you identify what is real or not real when you engage with something?

‍Is it placed there because someone thought it was actually a good idea or was it something that they picked up from another person?

This brings us back to learning and indoctrination for XR solutions. The majority of the knowledge that has been projected into us has never been questioned by us individually. The usual excuse might be, "someone smarter than I am figured it out" or "I don't want to waste my time on those things" or some variant. When we start to truly ask questions, most of the narratives just crumble.

How much of our learning has been programming? 

How much is the knowledge of our extended reality something that we never had a chance to question or uncover?

How much have we just looked the other way and never realized how things actually worked?

It might make you wonder how much of your thoughts are mere projections of the extended reality that influencers want you to think about.

Consider how there has been a rise influencers. Influencers who can gather followers. Followers who tell people about their perceived world to keep programming and controlling others without even realizing it. "You’ll get the life that you want as long as you keep working on it and following me." And then, many of these people believe that their life will transform by following these stars with checkmarks, badges, or anything that makes them seem more official.

Just because something is repeated multiple times by external influences, definitely does not mean that it is true. Conduct your own research outside of approved resources. It might change how you view our extended reality. Be careful of the “authoritative” sources you are using to program your mind.

Intuition

With a multiple sources of projection and influence surrounding our minds, take a few moments to consider how that might shape our intuition. Think about the number of times that a person picked up a sport, an object, or a device, and they seemed to have intuitively known what to do or how to use it.

How much of what you have practiced, learned, or trained shapes your daily interactions?

How much of that is connected to your conditioning, environment, or lived experiences?

Have you ever discovered your true strengths or abilities for things that you're exceptional at?

Time sure seems to fly when you are doing something fun, something effortless, or something that captures your attention. Throughout life, keep finding or creating situations where you can position yourselves and others to be in areas of your strengths. XR experiences can help users practice, identify, and determine areas of strengths that they want to work on in life.

Far too often people might focus on the tiny details or the tiny areas of weaknesses that are pointed out to them. People fool themselves into letting their external influences shift their thinking.‍

If you could only get better at this, then you will move on up.

If you only got better at that, then you could be this.

If only you tried this more often.

If only...if only...if only...

Then, you literally see people transform into versions of themselves that they could care less to be. Afterwards, they look back in life and wonder what happened to their journey. Well, they literally spent years of their life becoming a better version for someone else.

When thinking about interactions in XR, keep in mind that we are having hundreds, thousands, hundreds of thousands, if not millions of different interactions at a conscious or subconscious level. There are many actions that we have have taken and more that we have "learned" over the years. Through these experiences, we might reflexively believe that they are our own ideas. But what if they aren't?

Take some time to explain to yourself what has made up your intuition and differentiate what can be refined, molded, or shaped in an XR experience. You might explain intuition as a gut feeling that tells us what to do or how to think, and much of that feeling could be based on learned, planned or trained experiences. Ponder if those intuitions are our own or are they projected into us from other people. Be honest and think back to the number of times your judge of character has been correct or incorrect. Think about the number of times that you might have articulated, “I wish that I had stuck with my gut feeling on this.”

Come to terms with how much of this intuition is refined by our nonstop world programming. Consider if we have been programmed since birth and if we have been programmed by people around us. Look at how we have been programmed by so many "authoritative sources" who might have it all wrong about the realm that we live on. There’s so much to uncover, but will you ever wake up to the fact that we have been programmed on what to think, how to think, what to say, how to say, and so forth time and time and time again?

Constraints

For XR experiences, there can be a newfound sense of freedom within a digital world. As the experiences continue to add different features, constraints may differentiate how people will use the experience. Pay attention to how time, money, and convenience can be used within an experience.

Time

Time could possibly be measured, valued, or some other variation for any individual. We can spend our energy measuring time. We could also look at how we value time. And we could enjoy our time. Some might think that they can make money for an extended time period, while some feel like they only have a limited amount of time to make money. This will completely change how you look at your life, how you make your decisions, and how you enjoy everything that you do.

If you know how much time you have left, how would you live?

What kind of comfort and safety do you want, so that you can live your life?

How many stay at home cowering in fear?

How many stopped themselves by saying, “if only other people could do this, then I could live my life?"

How come you might not have enough time in the day?

Why do you have to take care of all of these other things before you can take care of what you want in life?

In our extended reality, time may be shifted or altered so we perceive that we do not have enough of it. A lot of entertainment and distractions can drain our life energy without many people noticing. Many times, people will use these outlets for recharging. Hours or days later, they might realize that they did not actually recharge, but they spent some of their precious time.

For our extended reality, consider how time plays a role in any experience. Think about how you value your time and you will see it manifest itself in your experiences.

Will people have the time to explore their surroundings? 

Can they test out buttons or features?

How can they reset an environment or interface if they make a mistake?

How will the information on the time spent by the user help with future experience adjustments?

There are many more questions to ponder about time, so enjoy thinking about it.

Money

Undoubtedly, time and money might come up in a discussion together. Money, in particular, plays a huge role in our extended reality. Money for devices, applications, or accessories can limit your ability to test multi-dimensional experiences. We have been conditioned with money to participate in a 2D world. So much of our extended reality rises and falls with money in a 2D world. Our minds try to justify a lot of 2D experiences in our 3D world. Influencers and projections fill up our mind with what our 3D reality could be with the right amount of money.

Consider how advertisements showcase a life that we could have for the right price. Think how the right amount of money can unlock new experiences, packages, skills, or accessories. Picture a life with your specific and favorite luxuries that fits your dream reality. Cars might come to mind for some people. (It is most definitely NOT a priority for me.)

With these luxuries, some might really enjoy driving the car. Others might enjoy making modifications. Still others might enjoy sharing their collection of cars. But they all have different strengths and interests.

This directly translates into how XR experiences can be created and monetized. Some skills, experiences, and accessories can be acquired for the right price and dedication. People will desire to have a specific skill or outcome associated with their brand, but sometimes in life that might not even be an area of strength for them.

Could you imagine giving someone a task to fix one of these luxury cars, where they are not in an area of strength, and having them attempt it? Not only will they take more time on it, but it will actually be frustrating for them. So, when you identify the areas that you are strong in, sell those services or skills. It keeps you positioned to focus on something that you are great at. Then, hire someone for the areas that you might not be great at. We have a huge fallacy of focusing on an individual's weaknesses instead of their strengths. It might be clear that they are not great in those areas, so why do people keep focusing on their weaknesses? Spend money on things, features, skills, or accessories that is worth spending on because it allows you to stay in or identify your areas of strengths.

Convenience

Sometimes saving a dollar might cost you twenty minutes or an hour. Sometimes, it gives you a few extra minutes to look at a message or send an email. Other times, it could give you a moment to breathe or cause you to make a mistake. At that point, you are literally trading time for money. Take a look around again. How many conveniences do you have in your daily life? Be honest and list them out. Consider how many that you might not remember life without. Think of how many of these conveniences have made a difference in your life. Think about how you were influenced to acquire them.

These conveniences will continue to make a difference as long as it positions you in areas that you excel in, areas that you enjoy, areas where you want to learn and grow. These conveniences will help you continue to make exceptional decisions. How can these conveniences be applied to XR experiences?

Think about the products that are sold to us. They might be sold at a lower price because of convenience. Food. Services. Accessories. But remember what the actual tradeoff might be for this convenience. Many of these conveniences can be available at our fingertips now. And even more are available with our extended reality in a more subtle manner. So, consider including these appropriately as part of your XR experience.

• Search bar
• Teleport button
• Undo button
• Exit button

These are some conveniences that are in current extended reality that might not be available to everyone in actual reality. Keep thinking and dreaming of new interactions.

Triggers

With conditioning and constraints around us, all it takes is something to get us to make a decision. However, many of the decisions might not be made with clarity and peace of mind. Pay attention to how Uncertainty, Confusion, and Deception can control your mind and influence you in extended reality.

Ponder this quote for a few moments:

Uncertainty

So many people make daily decisions because of uncertainty. It can lead us to make different decisions based on the current circumstances. Someone proclaiming with confidence might guide or help us second guess ourselves to make a decision. And uncertainty can gets us to question ourselves in positive, negative, or neutral directions. Remember that it is yet another influence on your mind and try to eliminate these as best as possible.

Each path, choice, or option could shift our extended reality in any possible way. Just be wary of the continued sources of uncertainty. Sometimes you just need to block it all out and focus on actual reality in front of you.

‍What does it feel like to have uncertainty fade away into the background?

When was the last time that you did not have to worry about all sorts of uncertainties? 

How did it feel?

For decisions, uncertainty can encourage action to make a decision or it can paralyze someone from making a decision. We can witness this in everyday situations. Take a few moments to explore the last ten times that you were uncertain about something. Write down how you responded to those triggers. If you ever reflect on them, explain or describe how that makes you feel. Take note of the emotions that might run through your mind.

Emotion is the core of many of these triggers. Disconnect from any uncertainties of life and examine how these uncertainties might trigger an emotional response or reaction. Think about how often something in extended reality activates or projects something in the mind to take action. Are those actions YOUR actions or actions that someone else motivated you to take?

Uncertainty in an XR experience can provide great opportunities to test someone's reflexes, preconceived ideas, indoctrination, or ability to respond to unknown situations. In highly immersive experiences, it can create tremendous cognitive dissonance for individuals as they break through the matrix and their fabricated reality. Handling uncertainty and the anxiety that comes with it can propel many individuals to regain control of their mind and unlock their legendary abilities.

Confusion

Conflicting information. Misinformation. Disinformation. Fact checking. All of this information is projected everywhere and into everyone. Our extended reality just exists in our minds. It is different from actual reality and a completely digital reality.

All sorts of information can create fear, uncertainty, and doubt. You’re surrounded by influencers, propaganda machines, trusted sources, authoritative sources, and much more everywhere you look. Yes. Everywhere you look. Some of your most trusted sources continue to lie, deceive, and confuse, time and time and time again. It’s in plain sight. And so many people say, "I feel confused. I feel overwhelmed. I feel like I'm on the verge of a mental health crisis. I feel this .... blah blah blah." LOOK at your actual influences around you. Do not dismiss them. LOOK at them when you’re in a state of confusion or have a lack of clarity. See them for who they are, and it can transform how you look at actual reality.

Confusion, misdirection, discomfort, and the need to know the latest news contributes to actual loss of control of your mind. Free your mind from the devices, tools, experiences that project a fabricated reality into you.

What are some sources of confusion in your life?

What are examples that cause you to question or doubt your own senses?

Why are you so addicted into believing them?

When was the last time that you disconnected from these influences?

Are you able to disconnect from these sources?

What can help you wake up?

How interested are you in waking up to discover the exceptionally beautiful realm that we are actually living in?

For XR experiences, confusion can arise when the user does not know of their options. It might be frustrating to find how to engage with the content. The user experience should be skillful and clean to help users find what they are looking for. Confusion created by the user experience is a surefire way to end the experience by the user.

Keep in mind that a state of confusion can be used in a positive manner to develop or refine skills. In highly immersive virtual reality or augmented reality experiences, confusion can be used to heighten or dull other senses. This may lead to a different level of awareness to help users solve problems or discover different outcomes. Strategic placement of confusion could help users unlock some clarity about a topic that they might not have had before.

Deception

Are you able to admit that you have been deceived?

I sure can. 

Are you able to admit that you have been deceived about EVERYTHING?

Yep, I'll be the first person to admit it as well. Life changes in the most fascinating way when you can see it through that lens. It will transform how you make decisions for the rest of your life. Deception can occur through trusted and authoritative sources. It can also occur with sources, individuals, or organizations who do not conduct their own research and experiments without challenging the "approved" sources.

Who are these sources?

How did they verify the information?

Did they just validate a claim using their own content?

How frequently are you basing your decisions on online reviews?

Many truths are hidden in plain sight if you choose to look and believe your own eyes. Wake up and believe your own eyes again. Deception could happen with something that might be 50% correct, but that doesn’t mean that it is actually correct. It is fantastic to clearly see how it works because it slowly erodes the trust that you have in your own ability. You might read sensational headlines and start to wonder. It will take you up to the point where you will not even trust your own eyes or senses. Then, you will try to defend the very systems that have deceived you in the first place. You will defend it tooth and nail until, hopefully, one day you realize that people were desperately trying to wake you up before you made your next decision.

Remember to take a moment to disconnect from all of your external influences. Give your mind some time and space to disconnect.

Within virtual reality and augmented reality experiences, subtle hints of deception can be used to test the knowledge that the user has practiced. It can be perfectly positioned to help them identify mistakes or refine techniques in a safe and controlled manner that might be impossible in the real world. But be careful with how much of a fabricated reality is projected into these experiences. There are already far too many published and further warping the minds of our next generation. Remember to help the user disconnect from their devices so they can differentiate actual reality from an extended reality for their future decisions.

Recovery

With so many influences with in our extended reality, it can be fascinating, exhilarating, troublesome, or any of type of emotion that you might feel about it. Being able to identify the sources of conditioning, constraints, and triggers that affect us is the first step. You will see it everyday once you awaken to it. Being able to free your mind of control is up to you to decide. Here are a few simple things to consider on your journey in XR.

1. Question everything.
2. Let go of misconceptions.
3. Embrace unlearning your indoctrination.

Remember that you are exceptional and it will be incredible to see how your light illuminates our extended reality.