In Ed Catmull’s book Creativity, Inc., he mentions that during the research phase for Pixar’s hit movie Inside Out, they learned from a neuroscientist that only 40 per cent of what we see comes from our eyes.  The rest of the information is pulled from memory, patterns and experience.

Our brain fills in the blanks if you will.  We think this is what someone meant based on what that action or situation told us the last time we saw it.

This can be a good thing as it cuts down on all the stimuli we must process in order to understand something.  It simplifies the process.

But it can also cause us to assume.  Assume that things always happen the same way.  However nothing in life is exact.

If you were rejected once, you may look at a situation and believe you are being rejected again.  And this belief will cause you to act a certain way that may in turn create a self-fulfilling prophecy of rejection.

So we must find balance.  Take in the information around us, but always remember that each person, each circumstance and each experience can turn out many different ways.  There are other ingredients in the mix including grit, resilience and a little luck.

Always work hard on honing your gift even if the world hasn’t noticed yet.

You can’t ‘look out’ for luck because luck has no pattern.  It may or may not take place.  But as Oprah said, “luck is preparation meeting opportunity.”

So prepare, be curious and take it all in.  But never forget that the X-factor in any situation is you.  That is your super power.  Whether you see it or not.