I think that I am the center of attention. You think that you are the center of attention. Nothing could be further from the truth. People are not really paying attention. It stings a little. People are not paying attention to us, because they are too busy paying attention to themselves. The human psyche is so self-focused that we assume that we are the object of everybody’s attention. They aren’t paying attention to you and likewise you are not paying attention to them.
Life’s Most Embarrassing Moments
Despite our delusions, even out most embarrassing moments may go unnoticed. I refer to embarrassing moments from my life quite often and invariably people do not remember the event. I’m really okay with that! That outfit that you had to have to impress, not many will even notice. My friends over at the Daily Coach reminded me this week about a truth of human nature that we do not talk too much about. It is called the Spotlight Effect. The Spotlight Effect refers to the idea that we frequently over estimate the number of people that are paying attention to us.
Thank God
The study shows us that people don’t even notice or remember the outfit that we are wearing. That is great news! I want to have a fresh look every Sunday, however that is completely unreasonable. I thank God for this reality. Having lived with so much negative self-image for most of my life, the Spotlight Effect is a welcome idea for me. I’m not over it. I am focused on me most of the time. You are focused on you most of the time. That is a hard pill to swallow. On the other hand, I’m probably going to notice your shoes. My shoe game is fairly strong, I hope that you notice mine too.
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