Where we place our attention matters.
It matters because the neurobiological processes of attention are not what we thought they were, attention is not just another cognitive function.
In his remarkable work, Dr Iain McGilchrist notes that we use both hemispheres. The left for detail and consistency, the right for perspective and flexibility, the left for the analytical and the right for the humanistic.
Together our two hemispheres shape the world we see and, as a result, the attention we bring to the world changes the nature of the world we are paying attention to.
Humankind is increasingly dominated by a preference for minute, mechanistic detail, often analysed to the point of suffocation, perhaps most visible in the constant push to digitise everything.
This distortion consistently and invisibly strips modern society of its collective emotional intelligence and appreciation of deeper human values.
As leaders, we need to engage our whole brain to embrace uncertainty and the unknown to find solutions to our current circumstances.
How we place our attention, therefore, dictates where we place our attention. Where we place our attention shapes our world. Consequently, the combined effect of how and where we apply our attention shapes the solutions we arrive at.
To learn more about this topic, consider having a watch of this fun and informative 12-minute video.
In the meantime, I wonder, what has your attention today and how you are applying it?