Recall the activity in which you were engaged just prior to reading this sentence. What had you done just before that; and before that? What will you do as soon as you are finished reading this article? Now ask yourself a difficult question that you have likely not considered: How did you know specifically to do each of those previous things? And how will you know to do what comes next? We maintain a flow of on-going experience or, coherence, through the interaction of our thoughts and behaviors. These thoughts, a series of internal pictures, sounds and feelings, create states of consciousness that guide our actions.
Think of your day as an enormously detailed “to do” list. Some items on the list seem larger and presuppose the occurrence of smaller steps. For example, arriving at work is preceded by waking up, washing, dressing, making breakfast or coffee and driving. These events, in turn, require the performance of even smaller steps of which each is comprised, and so forth. Turning a door knob, though seemingly an instantaneous, unconscious act, occurs as a result of an internal sequence of events which fires off very quickly. In that sequence, someone might tell himself (herself), “I need to open the door”, picture what is about to happen and compare it with a picture of how that operated previously, notice a perfect match and feel satisfied– all in less than a second!
However, sometimes our on-going experience is interrupted. Did you ever try to turn on the hot water in someone else’s home and become momentarily stuck? Perhaps you noticed that, unlike your hot water faucet, this one works the opposite way. Your internal “program” is stymied and you pause. And for just a moment, you coherence is interrupted and you don’t know what to do next. A similar phenomenon occurs when you reach for the doorknob and…its on the other side; a left-handed door. Or having driven a stick-shift most of your life and now driving someone else’s automatic, depressing your left foot where the clutch should be as you slow down at your highway exit..
The aforementioned examples being quite simple, people usually recover their coherence very quickly. But what happens when there is a major upheaval in your on-going experience? When the resulting behavioral fissures create inactivity? The on- going machinery of your day grinds to a halt. Motivation is lost. You may feel you are not going anywhere– that your life needs a new direction. Daily on-going behaviors are restricted to a minimum, as most of your day is consumed by indecision, bewilderment and possibly, depression. In short, you are stuck. In such instances, engaging in some form of peak performance training may not only re-connect you with your on-going experience but, help you operate at your highest level of efficiency. A useful model of such peak performance (offered with some modifications), called the “Intensive Journal”, was created by a psychologist named, Dr. Ira Progoff. Essential to this method is the idea of keeping a diary of experiences in a highly structured format. Writing daily thoughts and activities, recreates on the “outside” some of the on-going behavior patterns that normally occur on the “inside”, thus regenerating a state of coherence. Personal resources are accessed, leading to an improved level of performance. The Intensive Journal consists of several major sections, some of which contain daily entries, others, occasional:

• 1- Period Log which marks what has frequently been termed the “present state.” Where you are now. Things that are (or are not) occurring at the moment.
• (2) Twilight Imagery Log. This is where the work begins. It is the “vehicle” log designed to help transport you elsewhere. It involves generating creative alternatives by attempting to duplicate the twilight state between sleeping and waking. Recall that all behavior occurs in a state of consciousness; and twilight is one such state. This may be accessed through relaxation and meditation exercises; and through neurofeedback, a treatment process in which people receive visual and auditory feedback for the production of specific brainwaves; this case being theta brainwaves. Then write– or even draw– anything which occurs to you.
• (3) Stepping-Stones Log. This is the opportunity to use the concept, “trust in the past”, as a way of accessing resourceful states of consciousness that you can use in present contexts. Explore key events, people and places in your life where you were able to accomplish something important or resolve conflicts successfully. Step into these experiences and write present-state “dialogue” about each of these people and events; how each can contribute positively now.
• (4) Now: The Open Moment. Imagine how you will behave differently in the future based on your other journal entries. In creating this journal, you are coaching yourself to success by letting your (various successful states of) consciousness be your guide!