Let me share something that has profoundly changed my life: understanding how the Reticular Activating System (RAS) really works. Yep, it’s a bit of a mouthful, but stay with me. When you fully understand what it does and how to wield it on your terms it can truly unlock your potential.
What I Figured Out
Our minds take in an overwhelming amount of information every day, but only a small portion makes it to our conscious attention. The RAS is the gatekeeper here, deciding what’s important enough to focus on. It’s fascinating because it means our brain is always working in the background, filtering out the noise. Letting through only what it thinks that is important to you or will keep you safe.
The Magic of Emotion and Repetition
How does it know what’s important? Here’s where it gets really interesting. The RAS highlights things based on emotional significance and repetition. Ever bought a new car and suddenly noticed that same model everywhere? That’s your RAS at work. The purchase was emotionally significant, so your brain started picking out similar cars that were always there but went unnoticed.
It will happily beat you with a negative stick
There is a downside to this. The RAS doesn’t discriminate between positive and negative inputs. If you constantly tell yourself you’re a winner, your mind starts looking for evidence to back that up. On the flip side, if you focus on negative thoughts, your brain will find proof to support those too. It’s all about what you feed it.
Training Your Genie
So, how do you make this work for you? It’s simple: focus on what you want and keep reinforcing it with emotion. Imagine your goals, say them out loud, believe in them and pour emotion into them. Your RAS will start filtering the world, presenting opportunities that align with your desires.
Real-World Application
This concept explains why completely emotionally committing to a goal makes a huge difference. Goethe’s quote resonates deeply here: “Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.” Once you commit, your RAS helps bring unseen opportunities into view.
Manifestation is not magic it is just that you have aligned your subconscious with what you consciously desire. It gets your subconscious to work overtime on your problem. It uses the RAS to find for you all manner of things that your conscious mind misses.
Secret Superpower
The RAS is like a hidden superpower, filtering information based on what you deem important. By training it intentionally through emotion and repetition, you can transform your awareness and seize opportunities that align with your goals. So if you want magic in your life, commit to your dreams, and let your RAS guide you toward them.
Dive in, start focusing on what you truly want, and watch how your world changes.
