The first time I knew there was something like visual noise was during my first year at the university. It was exams time and after my second paper, I called my mom complaining that there was something wrong with me. I knew the answers to the questions but I just couldn’t remember because my brain was filled with a lot of things and at the same time, nothing.
She asked me to start reducing my study materials. I began studying with just my handouts and a notebook to jot down the important things. In second year, I came home with A+ throughout. So then, I realized that the problem was the distraction my eyes was going through from seeing a lot of things from my handouts, phone, laptop and tablets. And the worse part of it was that, I wasn’t taking notes to give my eyes the important points to feed on.
There was too much going on that my eyes struggled to see what needed to be seen. It was more than that because during exams, anytime I pictured or tried to remember anything from either my handouts, laptop, phone or tablet, I got nothing.
Eventually, I got to know the main way to deal with what I call visual distractions was to give your eyes important things to see. At work, for example, it’s very easy to miss the important agreements in permits that I have to issue for entities because there’s always a lot to go through. The number one thing I resort to is highlighting those parts just to help my eyes focus on them as I work on those permits.
As a crocheter, I can’t count the number of times I started different projects just because of how disorganized and tangled my yarns were. Of course, I always had an ongoing project but any crocheter knows that tangled yarns gets you distracted from the main thing you have to do. You find yourself trying to untangle them and you end up making a hat you never planned of. In that aspect, I resorted to making a DIY wall organizer for my yarns. This way, my eyes get focused on what I’m doing for the meantime.
As a lady, in as much I hate to admit, it was very easy for me to get distracted whenever I entered my closet no matter the deep cleaning I did. I always had double or triple of certain clothes and had to call my best friend to help me choose what to wear. Sometimes I even got distracted with sentimental possessions in my wardrobe and ended up spending time recalling memories before coming back to my senses to keep looking for whatever I was after.
Now, if there’s any clothing I hate but can’t get rid of, I make sure to upcycle it into something different. This way, I wouldn’t have to go through about 5 jeans and along the way, see that jeans with so much history and stand there smiling for minutes. I turn two of them into a dress and one into a top, to give them different purposes.
Doing these has helped me achieve a lot more in different aspects of my life. Unlike years ago where I had to be running about trying to meet deadlines, I now finish my work on time. I don’t waste a lot of time on crochet projects that have no meaning to me. I barely buy new clothes but my wardrobe always have what I need because I keep on turning the ones I hate into things I love.
I believe visual noise goes beyond the physical eyes. Our minds play a major role too, after all, that’s even where everything starts from. And with a lot going on around us, it’s easy to get carried away from your focus. Just like how we have ear buds to block out noise we don’t need, it’s very important to help your mind understand your priorities and your eyes see what exactly needs to be seen at all times.
Images are mine
