Small Change
Discover more from The Art of Noticing
Small Change
TAoN No. 142: A mindset, and a skill set, for noticing what matters. Plus a new Icebreaker, and more.
The other day someone asked me whether I thought of “the art of noticing” as a mindset, or a skill set.
Of course (we agreed) the answer is both. But I really liked the question. While the book and the newsletter mean to promote a mindset, I very deliberately chose a format that centered specific prompts, assignments, and games — designed to serve as enjoyable skill-builders. Ideally, they make the TAoN mindset feel more accessible and useful (and fun).
Just after that conversation I was clearing out some old links and found this BoingBoing post sharing a short video of “The Changing Room Illusion.” I think it helps make the mindset/skillset connection.
It’s going to be hard for me not to “spoil” it below, so if you’re interested in experiencing the “illusion,” check it out first! (Full screen if you can.) I recommend it! The video lasts just one minute, and there is no sound.
Here goes:
How’d you do? I’ll tell you how I did: terrible! I missed literally everything. So much for my noticing “skills”!
As the video description explains — again: spoiler alert — this is an example of graduate change blindness, “a phenomenon in which observers are unable to notice changes to the world around them when those changes occur gradually.”
There are lots of studies and much research around that basic idea; this example from Amherst professor Michael Cohen is unusual for illustrating it with lots of gradual changes. It demonstrates, in short, how much we miss.
I would add two notes (and now I’m gonna really, really spoil it). First, the instruction to “see if you can spot items … that seem out of place” is a misdirection that makes it much more likely that you’ll overlook those gradual changes. But that’s a strength of the illusion, because it mimics real world conditions — we are constantly being directed by others to attend to this or that flashy novelty, the new new thing, a nonstop clamoring for attention that make us miss other more subtle shifts.
Second: that black-and-white pinwheel-looking thingy near the center of the room is super-distracting! But again, I think that’s on point. There’s always some over-the-top distraction designed to suck up attention.
This “illusion,” then, underscores how much we miss because our attention is under siege. But, on a more hopeful note, I think recognizing that reality also underscores why it’s important to have an actively attentive and engaged mindset.
So what’s the skill to use in response to a distraction-filled environment? Maybe it’s making a specific effort to attend to gradual change — which happens not just slowly, but in tiny increments. And so:
What’s the smallest change you can notice this week?
Small change, and the ability to spot it, matters. Those small changes, over time, often turn out to be a lot more important than today’s flashy distraction.
PS: Feel free to share other examples of related “illusions” and perception research — but try to do better than I did at not spoiling :)
Noticing is about other people, too. The Icebreaker series aims to help with that. There’s a central collection spot for all the icebreakers to date, here.
Today’s icebreaker comes from reader Bella M.
What’s something you believe in but can’t prove?
This might be a risky question. But that’s partly why I like it!
Please send your favorite icebreaker (whether you made it up or found it elsewhere) to consumed@robwalker.net
TAoN IS A READER-SUPPORTED PUBLICATION:
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RECENTLY IN THE PAID EDITION:
A fantastic thread about the sounds we miss, and, following up the popular map the picture post, a look at the remarkable work of artist Wendy Red Star. Try a trial sub to check those out, and the full archive of past posts.
THE NEXT FREE EDITION IN TWO WEEKS
IN OTHER NEWS
Earlier this year I was interviewed for the podcast What Happens Next? from Monash University in Australia. Their new season is now out and I’m in two episodes: What Happens When We Stop Playing? and How Do We Balance Work and Play? Fun and games!
The comments on last issue (Map the Picture) were really good. I considered doing a comment round-up but I’m worried these posts are already too long!
John Warnock of Adobe, the person generally credited as the inventor of the PDF, passed away recently. Here is a piece I wrote for Marker a couple years back on the PDF as stealthily iconic digital object.
A toolkit for conducting a “walk audit” that could help improve walkability in your neighborhood.
Turning uncertainty with a name’s pronunciation into a physical object: Foreign Objects.
“Anthimos Ntagkas has a keen eye for these everyday alignments as he captures strange and amusing sights during his travels.” Some highlights.
Surreal taxidermy by Angela Singer, in Full Bleed.
“Retired” playground animals in Flushing Meadows Corona Park: “There are two dolphins, one aardvark, one elephant, one camel and one frog from various NYC parks that children have played and climbed on since the 1980s and ’90s.” I must visit next time I’m in NYC!
Steven Heller shares the excellent work of Uriel Sánchez, Mexico City sign artist. My favorite:
OKAY THAT’S IT!
As always, I value your feedback (suggestions, critiques, positive reinforcement, constructive insults directed at me, not at anyone else, etc.), as well as your tips or stories or personal noticing rituals, things we need a word for, and of course your icebreakers: consumed@robwalker.net. Or use the comments.
—> Or just click the heart symbol. That always makes my day.
And thanks for reading …
rw
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All this by Rob Walker PO Box 171, 748 Mehle St., Arabi LA 70032. Send me mail!
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Small Change
That was so interesting. I did terribly too. One thing I do is sketch the same tree every morning. It's quite and enlightening exercise. Thanks for this post.
So interesting! You’ve also made me think about how we stop seeing things in our environment that DON’T move--the stack of magazines or laundry that “disappears” over time when it doesn’t move. That’s also why retail establishments constantly change displays--so that you will “see” things because they’re different...