Those in the psychological field generally accept the premise that emotional responses are a consequence of the thoughts about an event more than from the event itself. Unfortunately, many people tend to act as if the event is controlling. An example of this process is found in an experiment I conducted. During a presentation I approached several women, each in a similar way, and made very positive and suggestive comments about one of their nicer features. Afterwards, I asked each of them to report on the feelings they experienced when I approached them. The first woman reported feeling anger because I was married and should not be behaving this way. The second was sad because she wished that her husband would be more complimentary. The third one was curiously awaiting the point of the experiment. The fourth woman said she looked at my big brown eyes and became quite attracted.

Although my behavior may have been quite suggestive, I did not cause these different emotions. Their thoughts about my behavior caused them. My behavior was indeed the stimulus, but each of the women engaged her own thinking interceptor. In his book "Creative Happiness", Dr. Botten explores the Thoughts-Emotion connections and suggests methods to help you become the "Creative Cause in your life, rather than the Victim."