Each of us has weak spots. These may be fears, phobias, complexes, doubts, and other unpleasant things of this kind. Even if there were a person so perfect as to have none of these problems, such an individual would still not be immune to developing some of them over time. Unfortunately, it is possible for someone—who knows how—to “help” activate and aggravate such states.

Through the application of certain techniques (in the previous chapter we already examined the technique of identification), an individual can be pushed into a state of psychological overload, in which they begin to focus on an imaginary or exaggerated problem—or several problems—thus disrupting and unbalancing their inner rhythm and thought processes. Such a state can reach a point where the individual completely loses control over themselves and their life, and as a result begins to deteriorate. Or, as it is said colloquially, they get “pulled into a movie.”

Speaking of movies, this brings to mind the film The Game (1997) starring Michael Douglas, in which his character—a successful businessman—is drawn into situations that undermine his sense of security, confidence, and control to such an extent that he loses his grasp on who he really is.

Achieving a similar effect (even if probably not to the extreme shown in the film) is not particularly difficult if the person attempting it is familiar with the psychological profile—and therefore the weak points—of the individual. From there on, everything depends on activating those vulnerabilities through skillful use of hints and associations, regardless of whether they are delivered face to face, in internet chats and forums, or through recommendations from a website, an app, an online search engine, spam emails, anonymous SMS messages, or in any other way. Wherever there is interaction—or even just one-way transmission of information—there is the potential for it to be manipulative and biased, based on the individual’s psychological profile.

As long as the hints and suggestions are methodical and persistent, many people can be submerged in their own—or someone else’s—nightmares of doubts, suspicions, fears, or life-blocking, self-esteem-destroying complexes. As in George Orwell’s 1984, someone can confront you with your greatest fears. And those fears are different for everyone.

I have heard, for example, that medical students in their first and second year go through a period in which they find symptoms of every terrible disease they study within themselves. And you—are you afraid of illness? Of cancer, diabetes, or perhaps COVID-19? Haven’t you ever wondered whether you might be showing symptoms of some dreadful disease? If not—congratulations. But you should know that most people are not like you. I, for one, am not.

When I was working in Dubai, I became interested in the quality of the tap water there—more specifically, whether it was harmful to drink. While searching the internet for an answer, I came across all sorts of alarming opinions, some of which claimed that the water in Dubai was not only unfit for drinking, but also caused skin rashes, hair loss, and even baldness. Although common sense and my personal experience contradicted such claims, the slight feeling of unease that arose pushed me to continue my online research.

That is how I ended up on a website where a dignified doctor and professor assured readers that tap water everywhere in the world was deadly, because the chlorine in it was supposedly the greatest killer, responsible for countless diseases and impairments, and even for premature death. Women and children were explicitly mentioned as being at particular risk. It was categorically stated that it was the husband’s primary duty to protect his family from chlorine intoxication, which allegedly caused irreversible damage.

The solution, according to the professor and website owner, was the purchase of complex and expensive purification systems costing over one hundred thousand dollars. These systems were sold in modules, and it was even recommended to buy a module for the toilet bowl, since chlorine vapors from it supposedly poisoned the air in the house and, if left unfiltered, would render the rest of the purification system pointless. The professor backed his claims with various graphs and cited studies, which upon closer inspection turned out to be completely fabricated, graphically distorted, or unverified.

As absurd as it may sound, I became seriously worried and even somewhat obsessed with the topic. Fortunately, this lasted only briefly—about a day or two—after which I snapped out of it. But the experience stayed with me as a lesson: I was not as psychologically immune to suggestion as I had thought.

People have many different fears related to their health that can be activated. But health is not the only area of concern. Think about what you are afraid of. Losing your job? Infidelity? Bankruptcy? Rejection? An earthquake? Illness of a loved one? Failure? An accident? Or something else? Perhaps you have an inferiority complex, or feel too old? You know best.

Everyone has their own “Achilles’ heels,” which someone skilled can target and shoot with poisoned arrows. There is no universal recipe for counteraction here. What matters most is individual psychological resilience and personal philosophy. Even if you become the target of such influences, try to adopt the mindset that every such arrow does not slowly kill you, but strengthens your psychological immune system and makes you stronger. Then that is exactly what will happen.