Hi,
This is Part 6 of this Coaching is about Discovery Series.
In this article, we are going to discuss various mechanisms of our mental blindspots formation.
Blindspots are the ideas/thoughts/perceptions which situated out of our current awareness. They are not just anything that we do not know. They are what we do not know we do not know. This double-unawareness paralyzes our urge to search for extra information.
What causes these Double-Unawareness? There are 5 major causes.
1. Reacting instead of Responding. When we are reacting to the situation, we are not using the most sophisticated part of our brain, the neo-cortex, which is responsible for our rational thinking. We react from the more primitive reptilian brain and the limbus brain. We are reacting to our fear, anger and other emotions. We are not rational at all!
2. Missing Information. There are so much information out there. We cannot process all the information. If the world is as slow as in the far past, we can absorb and handle them bit by bit. However, we do not have such luxury in today's super-fast paced, ever-changing world. The missed information becomes our blindspots.
3. False Assumptions. What helps us deciding taking in what information and discarding the others? Our assumptions (or our Filters in NLP)! Assumption and knowledge refers to the same thing. The only difference is the former is not matching the Reality while the latter one is. Both are assisting us to make faster decisions while the former causes us problems and the latter leads us to solutions.
4. The Bigger World. Everything is inter-related. There is no such thing as "individual case". People, scenarios and things are affecting each others. It is difficult to see the Bigger Picture and it is even impossible to see the Whole Picture. Everything outside our current perceived picture is our blindspots!
5. The World is Changing. No matter the speed is slow in the past or fast in today, the world is changing! We are always just in one single point in time. It is too easy to forget or to miss in all other points in the past. It is even more impossible to consider accurately the future. These are the blindspots in the 4th dimension.
A coach's job is to encourage awareness of clients' blindspots. The more they can perceive and consider, the better will be their decisions.
Keith
Explore, Exceed & Excel
P.S. You can find more of my ideas on blindspots from my new book, 盲點心理學 (co-authored with John Lau, in Chinese)
