Want a Better Future? Watch Where Your Mind Goes

A few months ago my wife and I used some gift cards and went to see a movie on a weekend. That’s right, as in the ACTUAL movie theater.

Afterwards, we stayed in our comfy recliner seats as the credits rolled by to see if any post-credit cliffhangers happened.

I swear the Marvel movies have trained us all to sit like Pavlov’s dogs through credits…

As the music was playing, my mind glazed over as hundreds of names rolled by the screen. Then in the middle of it all, my wife excitedly said, “Look! There!”

A bit startled, I looked confused at the screen. “What?” I asked.

“There! The name! It’s spelled with an ‘H’!”

Soon enough, I saw it as well: Nathalie… with an H in it.

My wife’s name.

Most of the time when we meet a “Natalie” its spelled one of a hundred different ways… Nataly, Natalia, Natalya, Natalee, and even Nataleigh. But rarely is it spelled with an ‘H’, like my wife, Nathalie. And so whenever we encounter someone in the “Nathalie with an ‘H’ club”, its kind of a big deal. Like a secret sisterhood that no one knows exists….

We high fived each other and continued waiting for the supposed cliff hanger… which never came (lame!). Grumbling, we gathered our things and left the theater. But as we did, my mind was re-living my wife’s extraordinary moment over and over again. Here’s why: of all the HUNDREDS (maybe even thousands) of names that passed by, my wife found the SINGLE one that mattered to her.

That means her brain filtered out the thousands of different data points, and was able to focus on the one thing that was relevant to her.

Do we realize how powerful our brains are?

(Photo: Sleeping Lady with Black Vase by Róbert Berény. Wikipedia.)

Another story that comes to mind is the famous example of the curious case of the Sleeping Lady with Black Vase. Painted in the art deco style between 1927–1928 by Hungarian artist Róbert Berény, it depicts a woman sleeping in a chair. Colorful and subtle, critics pronounced it as a fine example of European art at the time. Despite its modest fame and success, the painting was thought to have been lost during the mass chaos and upheaval of WWII.

All that changed Christmas Eve in 2009 when Hungarian art historian Gergely Barki saw it while watching the movie Stuart Little with his three year old daughter. The characters in the film had the painting hanging in their home and as the movie progressed, the painting featured prominently in several shots. Barki recognized it from an old archival photo he had been studying at the Hungarian National Gallery, and though he didn’t have a way to stop or record the movie, his keen eye was convinced this was the original.

After months of letters and emails, Barki discovered that after it was sold at an auction in San Diego for $40 in the 1990’s and underwent a series of additional sales at auctions and galleries, the painting was in the possession of a Hollywood set designer. And so he travelled to the US and discovered the painting was indeed the authentic piece of art painted by Róbert Berény decades before.

The painting was put on auction in December of 2014, 5 years after Gergely Barki’s keen discovery, and it sold to a Hungarian art collector for over $285,000 dollars. Pretty good profit from $40!

Again… while I am thrilled the painting was returned to Hungary safe and sound… the more intriguing part of the story is how Gergely Barki identified it so quickly.

(Photo: The painting as seen in Stuart Little)

Of the millions of pieces of data that composed all the sounds, images, words, and scenes he was experiencing watching the movie Stuart Little… his brain was able to filter all of that to identify this unique and forgotten work of art.

Do we realize how powerful our brains are?

In both of these cases (Nathalie with an H, and Gergely Barki finding the precious piece of art) their brains did an incredible feat in a bewildering amount of information. One reason why?

Because they had trained their brains to.

What does this have to do with influence and success?

Everything.

Because just like my wife found her name in the sea of credits… and just like Gergely Barki spotted a priceless painting in the middle of a kids’ movie… people who find “hidden” opportunity often do so because they’ve trained their minds to recognize it when they see it.

People who consistently succeed tend to share one trait: They’ve trained their perception.

Think about it:

• Someone who constantly sees opportunity in chaos? They’ve trained their brain.
• Someone who instinctively sees potential in people others overlook? They’ve trained their brain.
• Someone who seems to attract the right clients, partners, or results? They’ve trained their brain.

(Photo: Gergely Barki, art historian and sleuth)

But the opposite is true too. If your brain is trained to anticipate rejection, look for what could go wrong, or rehearse why you’re not qualified… guess what it will find?

More rejection. More doubt. More reasons to stay stuck.

So let’s make this practical:

• The next time something unexpected happens, pause and catch yourself. Are your thoughts heading toward “How terrible is this?” Or are they moving toward “Interesting… what are the possibilities here?”

You don’t have to rewire your brain overnight. Just start by noticing.

Notice the direction your thoughts naturally drift.

Then, gently guide them where you want them to go.

Because over time, the difference between staying stuck and moving forward… Is the direction you’ve trained your mind to look.

Do you realize how powerful your brain is?

-Christian

CHRISTIAN HANSEN has gone behind the scenes in some of the biggest organizations in the world to find out the reasons why some people get chosen and why others don’t. As the #1 bestselling and LinkedIn Top Ten ranked author of “The Influence Mindset: The Art & Science of Getting People to Choose You” Christian helps teams and organizations who want to stand out and be the obvious choice. With degrees from Brigham Young University and The London School of Economics, he’s helped thousands of individuals position and sell themselves. A fan of international communication, history, and choral music, he currently lives in Utah with his wife. Reach him at: TheChristianHansen.com