Chapter 3: Discovering Who’s Directing Your Life 39
minute proportion gets through to the rest of the brain. This filtering network
is called the Reticular Activating System, or RAS for short, and it works like
an antenna, noticing stimuli and alerting your brain to pay attention. The RAS
lets in only data that meet at least one of the following criteria:✓ The information is important to your survival. For example, when
you’re in a deep sleep but wake up because you hear a strange noise in
the house, or when you’re jaywalking in a daydream and you’re alerted
to traffic bearing down on you.
✓ The information has novelty value. Remember the last time you deco-
rated a room? Initially you had this feeling of real pleasure each time you
walked into the room as you saw the wallpaper with fresh eyes. Then,
after a few weeks, you notice that a painting is askew or an ornament not
quite central but don’t necessarily notice the pattern on the wallpaper or
the colour of the paint. This reaction is because the novelty has worn off.
✓ The information has a high emotional content. The survival aspect
also applies to other people; you’re alert instantly if your baby’s breath-
ing changes but sleep through your husband’s snoring or mumbling in
his sleep.
Can you remember the last time you misplaced a loved one in a shopping
centre and you searched high and low, promising to do all kinds of horrible
things to them for getting lost? And then, as if the crowd fades into obscu-
rity, you catch a glimpse of your loved one in the distance and you zero in
on them with nothing but relief. If you had no emotional connection with the
misplaced person, they’d just be another body in the crush. But because
they’re a loved one, they stand out like a beacon.Effectively the RAS operates on stimuli that are above its threshold of obser-
vation. Mundane and daily routines slip below this threshold helping you to
notice things that are relevant to your current goals.Can you remember making a list and sticking it on the wall? You may have
noticed it for a while and then no longer seen it even though you walk past
it several times a day. This change is because the list no longer has novelty
value and has been allowed to slip below the threshold for observation.We’re sure you know of chronically unlucky people, those who say things
like, ‘I never win anything’ or ‘lucky breaks don’t come my way’. These peo-
ple’s belief systems stop them from seeing opportunities. If an opportunity
was to jump up and slap them in the face, they’d say ‘that’s too good to be
true’ as they skirt the opportunity. Then some people always land on their
feet, the lucky people, ones who are open to possibilities. Their way of think-
ing has them seeking success out of failure because their belief systems dic-
tate that they deserve to win.Your beliefs affect the threshold level of the RAS. Someone who believes that
they’re a poor speller may not ‘see’ an advertisement for a reporter’s job,