ESTATE NEWS WELLNESS | THE | THE
CHOOSE YOUR FILTERS
By
“Figure out what you want to see more of, and then make sure you look out for it.” Caroline Webb, How to Have a Good Day
AIM
We’re each living through the lens of our own private reality – one that is shaped by our automatic system’s attempts at allocating our attention to the right thing. We experience an incomplete, subjective version of reality – one that may not serve us. We can’t switch off our automatic system’s filtering function (it is, after all, automatic), but we can adjust the settings by being more proactive in defining our perceptual filters.
• Sample exercise: “What really matters to me today is to help my team get off to a strong start with our new clients.”
We consciously notice only a small selection of what’s actually happening around us, and filter out the rest. What we mentally file as important is strongly influenced by our assumptions about ourselves and the world.
• Sample exercise: “I admit that I’m feeling grumpy and tired right now, and not necessarily in the mood to inspire others. I am irritated by the way the project is set up, and uncertain of its success.”
In How to Have a Good Day (Macmillan, 2016), Webb suggests taking some time to consciously set our filters each day by defining our AIM, ASSUMPTIONS, ATTITUDE and ATTENTION.
“Human behaviour flows from three main sources: 40 | ISSUEdesire, 4 | 2 0emotion 2 0 | T H and E H I knowledge.” L L S E STAT E Plato
Think about what’s most important to you on any given day. What do you most want to achieve? What matters most to you right now?
ATTITUDE Notice and acknowledge the concerns that are dominating your thoughts and mood. Are they standing between you and your aim?
ATTENTION Where do you want to consciously focus your attention to override your default attitude and achieve your aim? • Sample exercise: “I can decide to set my irritation aside and consciously look for opportunities to help the team gel by highlighting common ground in our ideas. I choose to look for chances to inject warmth into the meeting.”
