Why you suddenly start to see the car you just bought everywhere

Your RAS: what it does and how to make it work for you

Your brain receives an astonishing amount of information every second.

Fortunately, it doesn't try to make you consciously aware of all of it. If it did, you'd be completely overwhelmed.

Instead, your Reticular Activating System (RAS) filters incoming information and decides what deserves your attention.

You've experienced this before: Buy a new car, and suddenly you see that model everywhere. But of course the car didn't become more common. Your RAS simply decided it was now important.

The same thing happens with your goals.

When you repeatedly think about the future you want to create, your brain begins paying attention to opportunities, ideas, and people that support that future. You aren't “manifesting” those opportunities; your RAS is just causing you to notice them.

That's one reason Visualization and Affirmations are so effective.

They aren't magic. They're a way of teaching your brain what matters.

So don’t think of Visualization and Affirmations as woo-woo techniques that will manifest your goals. Think of them as training your brain to pay attention to what you want.

In The Success Mindset (coming soon!), I explain more about how Visualization and Affirmations work, the science behind them, and how to make them part of your daily routine.

- Paul