Spotting the unseen

Invite in curiosity and question the biases that inform your beliefs, to open your mind to new ways of being

How often do we find ourselves walking through life's well-worn routines, lost in the rhythm of our daily grind, oblivious to the world unfolding around us? It took the inquisitive curiosity of my toddler to jolt me into the power of noticing: an aeroplane soaring high above, a vibrant yellow flower swaying in the breeze, the sweet melody of birdsong weaving through the trees. Each day, my son's keen observations pull me out of the tunnel of future worries and immerse me in the wonder of the present moment.

Yet, amidst these newfound discoveries, I couldn't help but think: what else have I been missing? What hidden marvels and subtle cues had escaped my notice in the rush of everyday life?

'We have blind spots because, as humans, we form implicit biases that help us to navigate the world around us and provide useful shortcuts that are intended to be a benefit such as making quicker decisions by identifying other humans that are familiar to us,' explains counsellor Natasha Clewley. 'Our blind spots are created from many things, such as cultural experiences and references, upbringing, gender, and societal stereotypes,' she adds.

If we're all prone to forming biases of the world around us, how do they differ from someone else's point of view? According to Clewley, we can categorise blind spots into the following most common categories: affinity bias, confirmation bias, and the halo effect.