By definition when we’re caught up in thinking about or doing something we often don’t think of other things we could be focused on. A lot of this has to do with our previous experiences: a fashion designer walking down a high street may tend to pay more attention to the shop windows whilst a building contractor, walking down exactly the same street, may be more engaged in the method of paving used on the ground.
Action: We don’t have to try to take everything in – there’s usually far too much – but it can be helpful to adjust our focus from time to time to become more aware of things that we aren’t normally aware of. We then may choose to go back to focusing on our previous interests, but perhaps with a fresh perspective, or we may find that the content of our previous focus is no longer the best fit for us and prefer to engage our attention in something new and more relevant.