The Frequency Illusion (Why You See What You Believe)

Have you ever decided that you want to buy a specific make and model of a car, and suddenly you start seeing it absolutely everywhere you go?

Or maybe you've had an experience like my cousin Aram and his wife Sanan; when they were expecting a baby, they suddenly started spotting strollers on every single corner of Central Park!

In psychology, this is called the "Frequency Illusion" (or the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon). Your attention is drawn to the things that are already on your mind. Professor Anina Rich explains that we just weren't noticing these things before because our attention wasn't being drawn to them.

Here is why this matters for your personal growth: If you hold a self-limiting belief that you are unworthy of love, success, or accomplishment, your brain will constantly spot "evidence" that proves you right.

Worse, it will completely ignore the opportunities and data that prove you are highly capable.

In a Psychology Today article, Dr. Juliana Breines shares that someone who believes they are competent is much more likely to notice and seek out opportunities to help them get their dream job. 

This is directly tied to the concept of self-efficacy - an individual's belief in their capacity to exert control over their motivation, behavior, and social environment. If you believe you can get things done, you actually will.

The biggest misconception we have is that a belief is a static, intellectual concept. It isn't. Beliefs are choices, and they are the invisible scripts directing our moments of hesitation. If you want to change a limiting belief, you can't just try to "think" differently. You have to take action that provides new evidence to your brain.

During my second year at McGill University, I literally begged my professors to exempt me from every single presentation because I believed everyone would laugh at my stutter. By my third year, I realized I had to change that script.

I joined Toastmasters International and the university's debating club to voluntarily expose myself to the fear. 

Taking action was an irrefutably effective way to challenge my beliefs, and spoiler alert: my old beliefs were wildly inaccurate. 

Humans are, on average, significantly kinder than I had given them credit for.

The "Yes Way" Challenge: 

Your challenge this week is to break the illusion. Identify one self-limiting belief you currently hold. Then, intentionally take one small action this week that provides data to disprove it. Share your action step below! 👇