The Power of Innovative Thinking

Screening Out Stimulation

People come equipped with mental filters that affect the way they think. These filters are essentially subconscious, social or survival-related screening mechanisms.

Subconscious filters are linked to your values, culture and religious background. Your subconscious filters tell you to do the right thing, and it’s because of them that you need to ensure that your employer’s policies are not in conflict with your personal value system. Your subconscious filters sometimes will trigger emotions when you hear certain words or phrases. Be aware of your trigger words so you can control your filters and monitor your feelings.

Survival filters help prevent sensory overload. You have sound filters that block out sounds that are not important to you. Close your eyes and listen to the room you are in. Do you hear the hum of the laser printer and the motor in your computer? Perhaps you hear a telephone ringing in a distant office. When you are focused on your work, your mind blocks out these sounds, but does not mask sudden sounds like a ringing telephone or someone calling your name.

Memory filters are also survival filters. They allow you...