Who is your Erich Weisz?

Erich Weisz was born in 1874 in Budapest. He later moved with his family to Wisconsin in the US. You might wonder who he is or why you are reading about him at all. He is better known by his stage name: Harry Houdini, the master illusionist who became famous for his daring feats of escape from handcuffs and straitjackets. He could break free because of his skill in picking locks. By now you might be wondering why I am writing about him. 

Let’s think of who or what we encounter in our daily lives with the incredible ability to help us bust out of handcuffs or straitjackets. We cannot see this person or object, but we cannot live without it either. It is our mind.

Our mind can play powerful tricks on us, all of the time. It sometimes makes us feel we are in danger, or gives us the illusion of fear and therefore making us respond in fight or flight mode. 

The mind has the ability to trap us or free us from restrictions we have come to believe are true. It takes a lot of practice to know how to pick these “locks” and open our eyes to the choices we have before us. Life is all about trial and error and ultimately finding our Erich Weisz, or rather our Harry Houdini.

Why can’t we be open to opportunities and not restrict ourselves? Why can’t we give things or people a chance before we say no to them? The list of whys can go on and on, but let’s look at possible answers that can help us take off these handcuffs and straitjackets that our minds have falsely crafted in order to hold us back from exploring new chances in life.

I only write to provoke thoughts and not give answers. I want you to look within and find your Houdini to help you escape the illusion of handcuffs that the mind puts on our lives.

• Dr. Taghreed Al-Saraj is a best-selling Saudi author, an international public speaker and an entrepreneurship mentor.