Why do some things catch your attention and others don't?

Remember the last time you decided to buy a car? Once you decided what kind of car you wanted, all of a sudden, you started seeing more of that kind of car on the streets. Were they there before and you just didn't pay attention to them? A pregnant woman will start noticing other pregnant women. Your new house is close to railroad tracks, yet after a few days, you don't hear the trains anymore.

What is it that provokes your attention? At the base of the brain where it connects to the spinal chord is a region known as the Reticular Activating System (RAS). The RAS acts as a newspaper editor. Editors make decisions regarding which stories get big headlines, page one treatment, and which items wind up buried with the ads on page sixteen.

The RAS receives thousands of messages each second. Everything you see, hear, smell, feel and touch is a message entering your brain. The Reticular Activating System filters through all these messages and decides which ones will get page one treatment - that is, arouse the brain.

The largest portion of the brain is the cerebrum. This is the center for cognition or thought. Deep within the central portion of the brain are the subsystems that are triggered by emotions. When a signal gets through the "editor" ( Reticular Activating System ) and arrives at the cerebrum, the brain turns on thoughts, emotions or both.

Even though the cerebrum is the center for high level thought, it is unresponsive unless the reticular formation sends a signal to begin the data processing. Here's the hard part. What causes some messages to get through the filter and others to be blocked out?

One of the things we've learned from working with entrepreneurs is that we tend to pay attention to the things which are important to us at the time. If our currently dominant thoughts are about creating a new brochure, we'll start seeing other brochures. We'll hear conversations about brochures. We'll pick up ideas relating to brochures and even notice colors that would be attractive for the new brochure.

In other words, the Reticular Activating System will pass through anything even remotely related to the important issue - the brochure. >From a practical point of view, this means that, if we want to solve a problem or achieve a goal, keep it at the top of your mind. Think about it, talk about it, write about it and imagine it completed. This is one of the reasons why affirmations work so well and why it is important to review your goals frequently.

Some people will keep an idea at "top of mind" by creating a notebook of pictures, cut from magazines, that reflect their idea or their desired end result. This "image book" helps the visualization process, keeps the brain focused on the important issue and triggers the RAS.

If it's possible to turn on the brain, is it also possible to turn it off?

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About the Author...
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Gary Lockwood is Increasing the Effectiveness and Enhancing the Lives of CEOs, business owners and professionals.
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