As an expert motivational speaker, (during my inspirational speeches) I often ask: How often do you perceive the side of your own nose? And, if you wear glasses, how often do you see the frames? I imagine that your response to both these questions is: “seldom”.

This observation is actually surprising when you consider that both your nose and specs are well within your field of view. (My motivational speaker audiences are commonly very taken aback.) Why aren’t you persistently disturbed by them obscuring your ability to see? Here’s the reason why: It’s because your brain blocks them out.

In actuality, only a small fraction of the colossal amount of information picked up by your senses ever impinges on your consciousness. Attempting to intentionally weigh up all this data would be as hard as trying to catch all the rain in Seattle in a bucket the size of a teacup. Filtering out all the ‘unimportant’ information, (and that includes your nose and glasses), is a essential brain function.

How come - as a motivational speaker - did I think it was extremely important to bring this wierd visual phenomenon to your attention? Answer: Simply because (in basic terms) it raises a crucial issue. This scientific oddity got me contemplating, does a narrowed perspective mean limited success? Bottom line, a number of aspects of the brain filter directly influence our productivity. For instance, it directs our awareness towards our expectations. In this article I’m going to talk about a most important element of the brain sieve, how it tends towards the negative.

A Negative Focus

The brain sieve focuses your attention towards the negative elements of your circumstances. Need persuading? If so, take a crack at this straightforward assignment. (Incidentally I commonly propose this experiment in my inspirational health care presentations.)

Draw a straight line down a piece of notepaper. Now, for the rest of the day, when you “think positive” sketch a “Smiley Face” on one side of the line. On the other hand, each occasion you have a negative notion, mark a cross on the other side. Try it and note which half of the paper you cover first. Most people cover the negative side of the paper much quicker than the positive.

Psychologists have suggested that what we could do with is a wider viewpoint. It’s very important we gain knowledge of how to compare the positive and negative characteristics of a situation. Why? It turns out that Brain scientists have studied this trend extensively, and have consistently found that an optimistic perspective is linked with higher results.

A Motivational Speaker’s Solution…

If you find a negative notion pops into your brain, try these simple action steps:

Tip 1: Recollect your inherent inclination to focus on the negative

Tip 2: Then, look at your circumstances from several viewpoints.

Tip 3: Ask yourself simple questions. For example: Honestly, how awful this is problem really? Is it likely, I’ll even recall this irritation in three years time?

To sum up, being knowledgeable about your brain sieve will make you less reactive and more effective. Take control of your thinking and pay attention to what happens. Take it from a motivational speaker, you’ll be shocked!

 

Technorati Tags: , , , ,