Why do we suddenly start noticing things that we didn’t notice before?

Have you ever had that experience where you’re thinking about something new to you, and then you see it absolutely everywhere you go, like it’s stalking you?

It could be a number, a new word you’ve just learned, or a model of guitar you decided you want.

This happened to me last year I had decided to go back to university and start studying, I was researching different courses and different universities. At that time I also noticed a lot of advertising for the same universities that I was researching. At first, I thought it was the universe speaking to me, or maybe just a coincidence.

My logical mind knew that the posters were probably always there, I just hadn’t noticed them before.

I’m curious by nature, so I had to know why we suddenly start noticing things that we didn’t notice before. So, with the help of our friend Google, I went online to do some digging.

The Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon

What Google obligingly told me is that this phenomenon has a couple of names: The Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon, and Frequency Illusion.

The first name refers to the 1970s West German terrorist group but actually has nothing to do with them, it comes from a random comment on an online news forum!

The second name refers to one of a number of cognitive biases; psychological references for certain things.

In the case of frequency illusion, your subconscious attention is focussed on a certain thing and therefore draws your conscious attention to it whenever it can. This effect is compounded by another bias; confirmation bias. After noticing whatever it is you’re noticing a few times, your brain is convinced that you definitely are seeing it more.

That’s it in a nutshell but what causes frequency bias?

This phenomenon happens because of a particular part of our brains called the Reticular Activating System (or RAS for short).

The RAS is a bunch of nerves around the brain stem. It’s involved with a few functions including, consciousness and regulating the transition between being asleep and awake, but the function I’m most interested in is aiding your subconscious to highlight things in the world around you, that are relevant to whatever is currently important to you. In other words, whatever you think about, you start to see in the world around you.

It’s like your subconscious is shouting out to you, “HEY! LOOK AT THIS. THIS IS WHAT YOU’RE LOOKING FOR, RIGHT?”

How your Reticular Activating System can screw you over

As I learned about the RAS and frequency bias, I realised that it has much deeper implications than noticing words or advertising.

This function of the RAS can seriously put a spanner in the works or help you out, depending on what you choose to focus on.

Let me elaborate; if you decide (yes, it’s a decision) to focus on negative thought patterns and negative self-talk such as:

- “I’m not good enough”

- “People don’t like me”

- “I can’t be successful”

-”I can’t do (insert goal here)”

…guess what happens.

That’s right, your RAS spends all day searching for all the negative things while shouting “HEY! LOOK AT THIS. YOU SAID YOU’RE NOT GOOD ENOUGH, I FOUND PROOF. AND MORE PROOF HERE. YOU’RE SO RIGHT!”

You can only see what you choose to believe because your RAS just filters out all the millions of opportunities around you that could help you be MASSIVELY more successful.

It’s your nature as a human being to look outside for answers. You try to look for opportunities to be successful or solve your other problems, while at the same time lugging around the deep-seated belief that “it’s just not possible”, “it’s unrealistic”, “I can’t do it”.

So then every single opportunity that the universe presents to you is instantly dismissed by your subconscious brain.

You need to train your RAS to work for you so that it’s out there looking for things that can push you forward instead of holding you back.

How to train your reticular activating system to work for you

It’s simple: focus on positive thoughts.

I know, I know. It sounds like wishy-washy new-age claptrap! I used to think so, and it was…because I believed it was.

All it takes is one decision. Make a choice to focus all your attention on positive thought patterns and self-talk that will take you closer to your goals.

Here are the examples from before:

Don’t say: “I’m not good enough.”

Instead, say: “I am good at tons of stuff, and I can learn how to become good at even more.”

Don’t say: “People don’t like me”

Instead, say: “A lot of people like me, and some don’t, and that is totally fine. That’s their choice, I’m not for everybody”

Don’t say: “I can’t be successful”

Instead, say: “Other people have been successful. I can become successful too.”

As you start doing this more and more, your RAS will start to shift its focus, and you’ll begin to see the world in an entirely different light.

Yes, everything is still the same, but somehow it looks completely different. You’re looking at the world through a different lens, from a different perspective and you start to recognise the true abundance of opportunities out there.

What things do you say to yourself that hold you back? Have you managed to shift your focus? I’m genuinely interested in hearing from you so reach out and let me know.

Thanks for reading.

Andrew ‘Wilko’ Wilkinson

Originally published at https://mytimemylife.org.