What Filter Do You Have On?

On a moment-to-moment basis we are consciously aware of less than 1% of the sensory information that is coming into us. Wow, that is not very much!For example, until I ask you, you probably are not consciously aware of your thumb. Now you are. Spend a moment and bring all your awareness to your thumb. Look at it, feel it, perhaps even taste it or smell it. Your thumb becomes your whole world.While conscious of your thumb what weren’t you aware of? The view, music in the background, your flu symptoms, your thinking…?How do we choose the 1% to focus on? Can we choose the 1% to focus on? Who else chooses the 1% for you to focus on?I was sitting in front of my home the other day, in conversation about some projects I am working on, noticing the beautiful spring flowers and trees, the beautiful spring weather. It was amazing, I was full of love, gratitude, and appreciation. At some point the conversation shifted and I was hearing something I didn’t want to hear. All of a sudden I woke up to my focus and found I was staring at the one dead flower in front of my house. For a moment I had lost the awareness of the bounty and beauty of where I am living. It only took a moment to refocus, but it changed everything, and the thing that was bothering me didn’t seem to infringe on my happiness, it was still there but not significant, just a problem to be solved.What are you choosing to bring into focus?

We can listen or watch the news, I like a little NPR in the morning. But the news is often filtered for heaviness, worry, doom and disaster; actually we don’t even need to take the news as heavy when we remember that it is just filtered life.At the same time the gloomy stuff is happening, there are amazing things happening in the world, all over, all around you. People are growing and changing, families are expressing love to each other, businesses are succeeding, economies are growing, people are helping each other, investors are investing, inventions are being made.Check out this Paul Hawken 2006 speech at the Bioneers Conference for a brighter perspective. And, if you want a some cheer about the direction the future is headed I recommend the book:  Abundance: The Future is Better than You Think. Click on the link to go to Amazon.We also have the ability to lose all present focus and take our awareness to thoughts about the past or future. Just lying in a comfortable bed in the morning we can be surrounded by comfortable warmth, hear the birds chirping, be at ease, and then bring our awareness to our thoughts and taking ourselves out of the sensations that surround us into worry, burden, shame, frustration.... Thinking can totally distract us from what is present.Our thoughts are great for remembering what we have learned from the past, very useful, but they can handicap us when we dwell on the past.Thoughts are wonderful when we plan for the future, but when we obsess and worry about what may happen, they take us out of present being.Notice when you are in your thoughts and not present to what is true right now. You are actually filtering your present experience and bringing your 1% of your awareness to your thoughts. Is this always serving you?The ultimate key to abundance, happiness, and fulfillment is to get present right now, right here and notice, really notice the 1% that is great right now. In fact 99% of the time, things are great right now.How are you right now? Are you giving attention to what is most important, meaningful, beautiful, moving, inspiring here in the present?In your life what are you choosing to focus on? Are you presently aware of the spring abundance all around you, the person you are with right now, the great home you live in, the food you are eating, the birds that are singing? Or are you giving your energy to what will happen in the future, the one part of your body that hurts, the stain on the carpet, what is wrong in the world, or who didn’t do what?For the rest of the day stay conscious of where you place your focus. See how often you can refocus to what is inspiring and beautiful. At the end of the day ask yourself what the net effects of your refocusing were. You are in charge of your 1%. Use it well!