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🧠 The Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon
Published 11 months ago • 5 min read
Hey Reader,
Welcome back to Living Better—your ultimate guide to living a happier, healthier, and more fulfilling life.
Ever noticed that once you learn about something new, you start seeing it everywhere? This isn't just a trick of the mind but a known psychological occurrence called the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon, or frequency illusion. It’s a bizarre dance of information and attention where newly acquired knowledge primes our brains to recognize these details in the world around us.
"Baader-Meinhof phenomenon. It’s when you become aware of something—the name of an obscure band, say, or a new type of pasta—and it seems to suddenly appear everywhere. Frequency illusion, it’s also called."
- Greer Hendricks, The Wife Between Us
Why It Happens
Our brain's reticular activating system (RAS) plays a key role here—it's the gatekeeper of information that deems what's relevant enough to notice. When we encounter new information, the RAS flags it as important, and suddenly, it seems to appear everywhere. It’s like setting a Google alert for a rare car model; suddenly, you see it on every street corner.
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In 2015, entrepreneur and CEO Robert Glazer started sending a weekly inspirational note to his employees each Friday morning.
Soon, employees were sharing the notes with colleagues, friends, and family outside the company who asked to join the email list, so Robert opened the newsletter up to the public.
Today, over 400 Fridays later, Friday Forward has grown into a Friday morning ritual for nearly 200,000 people across 150 countries who are passionate about leadership and self-improvement.
Friday Forward delivers a short, inspirational, or thought-provoking story to your inbox every Friday.
Though topics vary, they are oriented around a clear purpose: sharing the inspiration you need to reach your full potential and be your best for the people who matter most to you.
Enhanced Learning: Use this phenomenon to your advantage by actively noticing new information. When learning something new, seek it out actively in your daily life. This reinforcement strengthens your memory and understanding.
Awareness Expansion: This phenomenon can broaden your perspective. By acknowledging that you are more likely to notice things you've recently interacted with, you can intentionally expand your awareness to include a wider variety of information.
Creative Inspiration: For creatives, this phenomenon can be a muse. If you're working on a project, immerse yourself in relevant themes and watch as the world seems to bloom with inspiration relevant to your work.
Actionable Steps
Track Your Observations: Start a journal. Whenever you learn something new, make a note of it, and then tally each time you encounter it again. This not only reinforces the learning but makes you keenly aware of your environment.
Curate Your Inputs: Since your attention can be hacked by frequency, curate the information you consume according to what you want to notice and understand better.
Engage with Variety: Regularly change up the topics you read about or the hobbies you engage in. This variety can turn the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon into a tool for diverse knowledge acquisition.
Community Spotlight
Dive into heartwarming stories and inspiring journeys from fellow Living Better members! This week, we're highlighting Sofi's inspiring story:
"The past week and a half, I have been planning on doing something special for a good friend of mine. His name is Jahiem.
I have known Jahiem since we had Mrs. Dragotta’s class together in third grade. He has always been that one student where he does all of his work when due, never misses school, always helping the teacher out with stuff in class, and always being a happy human being.
Last week, he didn’t want to sound in need, but Jahiem asked, ‘Can someone buy me a pair of shoes? I don’t like mine and I wear a 10-11.’ I’ve always thought about getting him something before but never had the money or the gut to do it.
Since I’ve gotten a job and have been working really hard, I got the money together and bought him a pair of shoes the next day. My mom and grandfather helped out as well.
When giving him his stuff and watching him open his bag, all my emotions were coming out. Seeing him crying was very emotional because I could see that he was didn’t know what to think.
I am so thankful to know that giving Jahiem those shoes made him so happy and allowing me to realize that giving someone something so special can be life changing. I love you Jahiem, with everything in me."
While the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon highlights our brain's penchant for patterns, it also offers a unique way to mold our perceptual experiences, enhancing both learning and creativity. Let's leverage this cognitive quirk to enrich our understanding of the world, making everyday a little more familiar yet wonderfully surprising.
Remember, the world is as rich as we perceive it to be. How will you tweak your perception today?
Designer, bestselling author, and founder of the School of Joy. I help people find more joy in life and work through design. Join more than 45,000 readers who receive our weekly treasure trove of science-backed tips, delightful discoveries, and inspiration for living a better life.
Your ultimate guide for captivating personal stories, actionable insights, and evidence-backed advice, propelling you toward a meaningful life. Join our community of 200,000+ readers!
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