How your mind is manipulated: you're influenced daily without being aware of it. Learn how the power of suggestion plays your head.

Last spring, a horrific car accident left Laura VanRyn in a coma ... at least that's what her parents believed when they saw their daughter lying in a hospital bed. But in reality, Laura had died, and another young woman, Whitney Cerak, was in the coma. How could Laura's parents not recognize their own child? Because emergency personnel had confused the two women both blond and around the same age and body type--and Laura's parents probably wanted so badly to believe what the people in authority were telling them.

This tragic story illustrates how potent the power of suggestion can be, but there are many more subtle ways that outside influences shape our thoughts. "In every aspect of your life, little seeds are planted in your head that mold your opinions, your perceptions, even your memories," says psychotherapist David J. Lieberman, PhD, author of How to Change Anybody. Find out the ways in which your brain is being controlled.

How It Works

Obviously, you have your own opinions. But we're easily influenced by people we consider to be authorities. "When the media, a shrink, or anyone else in a knowledgeable position puts an idea in your head, you often just accept it as truth, assuming the 'experts' know better than you do," explains Lieberman.

Once that seed is planted, your subconscious takes over. "The idea festers and then influences how you perceive the world," says Stephen Kraus, PhD, author of Psychological Foundations of Success. "Although you see and hear one thing, your brain interprets it to reflect what's been suggested to you." Take the image to the left. Did you actually see the color ...