Suddenly, It's There

"Are we there yet? Are we there yet?" My brother and I asked our parents repeatedly. We were on our way somewhere that day. To keep us from bothering them so much about getting there, my parents gave us a simple task. We were to count as many red cars as we could until we got to our destination. I learned something that day, and it's been a part of me ever since.

We counted, alright. It was such a mundane task—something I wouldn't oblige to do at my age now—but we were kids and our thoughts were way simpler then. And if I remember well, we gave a big number that day. It was then I realised that there were actually more red cars on the road than I could have imagined. I just never noticed them. A similar thing happened years later.

We bought another car years later. It was an SUV this time. An Acura MDX. It was a really nice upgrade for the family, and I loved everything about it. But thereafter, I started to see that so many people actually owned the very same car and even the same color sometimes. We sometimes say things like, "Oh, that's like our car," the times we were on the road. Before we owned one, I never knew about the car or thought it existed.

There's an explanation for how this happens. I learned that there's a part of the brain called the Reticular Activating System that determines the information your brain pays attention to. It filters the tons of information you receive from your senses based on the things that matter to you—your goals, priorities, etc. But that's by the way...

I began to really understand how this really plays out in my everyday life when I began hearing the guitar lines in songs more since I have been playing the guitar. And in turn, that even helps me get better. It was like a cycle. The more I learned how to play, the more I could notice and hear. And the same psychology applies in many other areas.

As it turns out, you can't hit a target you can't see. And the opportunities that are around you—you'll miss them if you can't even recognise them to begin with. So I have learned over time that in order to get better at something, grab opportunities, or even be more efficient in gathering the right information, I have to posture myself right. And to do that, it starts with the thoughts I think and where my heart lies.