The Yellow Car Phenomenon

"Okay, so tell me, what's the most unusual colour of car that exists?" I asked my husband, determined to prove a point I had just read. 

"Yellow," he replied.  I have to say, in that moment, I thought my experiment was about to fail.  I couldn't remember having ever seen a yellow car.

The point of the article was that we see what we are looking for, even if what we are looking for is rare; when we set an intention to see something in our lives, we become more aware of where that already exists in our lives, and we simultaneously attract more of it into our lives. 

The point of the exercise was to choose an unusual car colour (as a trivial example of the principle) and then notice how often you see that colour, simply because your brain is attuned to it. As a very straight-lace business man, he thought I was nuts!

That weekend, we had to drive up to Cheshire from London.  By the time we got home, we had counted over 70 yellow cars - not including AA Vans.  I rest my case!

Although the exercise may seem trivial, the implications are more profound.  How often do we get up in the morning and think, 'Oh no, here I go again... more problems, just like yesterday?'  That random thought unconsciously programmes us for the day. 

We are creatures of habit.  If we always look for the storm clouds, we always find them.  Equally, when we start looking for the silver lining, we start to see it more often.  We have a choice: we can either consciously programme our minds - by focusing more of what we love and appreciate - or unconsciously programme our minds - by thinking the same thoughts that we always thought.  Either way, what we look for is what we will find most frequently.