We frantically search for our "lost" keys that are lying in plain sight on the kitchen counter. We don't we see the keys. Why not?
Because we already decided "the keys are not there." And once we make that decision, we create a blind spot in our awareness. The result is that we don't see the keys where we don't expect them to be.
If we miss seeing keys out in the open because we decide the keys aren't there, what else could we be missing because we decide it's not there? Could we be "blind" to other possibilities and opportunities that are right under our nose?
What's New, Pussycat?
A mind-blowing scientific experiment reveals how the early physical environment of kittens determines what they are able to see-and not see-as they grow up. Two-week-old kittens are placed in a room with walls painted with vertical stripes and kept there as they mature. Almost from the moment they are able to see, the kittens live in an environment of vertical stripes. Later, the cats' world changes. They're removed from their vertically striped surroundings and placed in a room painted with horizontal stripes. Surprisingly, our furry felines don't see the horizontal stripes. Bang! They run right smack into the walls painted with horizontal stripes, time and time again. Why?
Scientists discovered that because the cats don't have horizontal stripes in their environment as they grow up, the brains of the cats don't develop the neurons that recognize horizontal stripes. So when elements they've never been exposed to appear in the cats' world, their brains don't register the new elements in their environment.
Yikes! Could we be unable to recognize elements in our current environment because those elements were missing when we grew up? Yes, we could! But before we look for aspects of life we might not be seeing, perhaps we should look for aspects we might not be hearing as well.
If we miss seeing keys out in the open because we decide the keys aren't there, what else could we be missing because we decide it's not there? Could we be "blind" to other possibilities and opportunities that are right under our nose?
What's New, Pussycat?
A mind-blowing scientific experiment reveals how the early physical environment of kittens determines what they are able to see-and not see-as they grow up. Two-week-old kittens are placed in a room with walls painted with vertical stripes and kept there as they mature. Almost from the moment they are able to see, the kittens live in an environment of vertical stripes. Later, the cats' world changes. They're removed from their vertically striped surroundings and placed in a room painted with horizontal stripes. Surprisingly, our furry felines don't see the horizontal stripes. Bang! They run right smack into the walls painted with horizontal stripes, time and time again. Why?
Scientists discovered that because the cats don't have horizontal stripes in their environment as they grow up, the brains of the cats don't develop the neurons that recognize horizontal stripes. So when elements they've never been exposed to appear in the cats' world, their brains don't register the new elements in their environment.
Yikes! Could we be unable to recognize elements in our current environment because those elements were missing when we grew up? Yes, we could! But before we look for aspects of life we might not be seeing, perhaps we should look for aspects we might not be hearing as well.
Our life experience is all about 'perceptions'.
Two men walk into a forest. One is blindfolded and the other has ear plugs in both ears. They are both placed in a small clearing facing a huge redwood tree. Then they are removed and asked individually to describe where they had just been. Will their stories match? They have both been in the same spot at the same time. One man describes the biggest and oldest redwood he has ever seen while the other man heard a bird overhead and thought rain drops he felt on his face might be birds droppings. Same spot, same time but two entirely different experiences. Its all perception.
So what is in your blind spot? Have you overlooked an opportunity or misinterpreted an important event in your life?
