Essay written for the course "Soul Beliefs: Causes and Consequences" at Rutgers - New Jersey State University taken at Coursera

1. 1
Core beliefs
Luiz Guilherme Leite AMARAL1
As a member of a very educated family, I was never forced to believe that
some kind of entity monitors my life and rewards (or punishes) me for my behavior.
As a matter of fact, my parents are somewhat religious and I learned catholic prayers,
but not as an attempt of conversion; it was rather one more element of the education
that I had.
I find very tricky, though, to talk about myself and the cores beliefs that I may
possess, because in one hand I would be analyzing myself and I don’t think that is the
right way to come about with these ideas. On the other hand, I would sound
obnoxious since I have a clear perspective of who I am and where I belong. Anywho,
the listed provided in this assignment brings some examples I might relate to.
First: “I am an imposter”. That sounds like someone really insecure, or who is
really aware of this “condition” and do not want to get caught. Sometimes I feel I am
an imposter when I can’t solve a problem I was supposed to, or weak, but that doesn’t
change who I am entirely. The same thing happens when I think “I am under-rated by
people around me”. That doesn’t sound true. Of all my closest friends, I am the only
one in a Master’s in Communication Program, I am the one with a government
scholarship, but that also doesn’t mean that they are under-rated either. It is just a
matter of what paths you choose in your life.
Statements like “I am honest”, “I am polite” and “I always keep my word”
sound much more like a basic rules for living in society that inner values or core
beliefs you may cherish. The way I see those statements is that they rely much more
on how you wander among your peers than have a structural belief of your character
but lack the ability to perform those actions. These might be involved with being
good, doing what is right and other ethical parameters, but I do not see them solely as
core beliefs.
On the other hand, statements such as “I am unattractive”, “I am stupid” and “I
am a phony” sound like a psychological disorder much more than a flaw of character
or core belief. How can I think I am unattractive if I had several girlfriends and today
1
Regular
student
on
the
Master’s
in
Communication
and
Culture
Program
at
University
of
Sorocaba,
Brazil.
Ministry
of
Education
CAPES
scholarship
granted
in
March
2015.

2. 2
I am married? How can I think I am a stupid if I belong to a stratum that is accounted
to less that 5% of my country’s population? How can I be a phony if I use too little to
pass by? That doesn’t seem like the right way to think of myself. Again, this might
belong to people with different disorders, or people who need constant positive
feedback and reinforcement, but I do not think that I qualify for this. I am pretty
aware of who I am.