So, What's the Weirdest Thing in Your House?
What we notice shapes our experience of the world and when we recognize that even the most routine things become interesting.
What’s the weirdest thing in your house? When Rob Walker posed this question on the podcast, it got me thinking. And, more importantly, it got me looking at my environment in a new way.
“What we give our attention to is at the heart of who we are as humans,” says the author and design teacher. “Pay attention to what you care about.”
Geez, I thought. So many days my attention is scattered, fragmented. I’ll be watching a movie and picking up my phone to read about one of the actors or in the middle of writing a chapter and drop my focus to take out the dog. Even, fail to notice the streetlights on the way to the store.
When I get caught up in my multi-tasking routine I’m doing a lot, hustling around, but not really noticing anything. That blunts the entire experience. It sure isn’t satisfying or even very meaningful.
What we notice creates our experience of the world. And, I don’t want my experience to feel like some drive-thru where you grab the bag at the window without even stopping to see what is in it. I want it to feel full and interesting and rich. I want to have peak experiences and meaningful moments and I don’t want to miss anything because I’m forgetting to notice.
After talking with Rob, and reading his book The Art of Noticing I’m practicing deliberate noticing. Paying attention. Taking in what’s around me that may have gone unseen, unheard, unfelt. And it’s cool.
This simple practice of deliberate noticing has made even the most routine tasks so much more interesting. I notice numbers on my walk and have seen things in the neighborhood where I’ve lived for years that I’ve never noticed before. I’ve had conversations at the dinner table about things that have never come up.
And just taking it all in without having to do anything? Wow. What a relief. Simply by noticing the scents and sounds and sights we engage with our world differently. And life become bolder.
And, as Rob says, it’s what you notice that no one else notices that makes your experience of the world uniquely yours and it’s the core of who you are.
So, listen for one minute, what do you hear? Frame a picture with your eyes, without taking actually pulling out your phone and taking a picture. Simply notice.
And, what is the weirdest thing in your house?
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Notes: These ideas are so practical and have changed my experience and enhanced my creativity this week. For example, my difficult walks over the same path each day have become easier and more interesting because of how I’m using my attention. This episode with Rob Walker offers plenty of other ideas about noticing. It was a fun conversation. Learn more on Polly Campbell, Simply Said.