The Unseen Forces That Shape Our Lives
We all have blindspots.
They're the invisible frameworks through which we see the world - the beliefs so deeply embedded in our thinking that we don't even know they're there. Yet these hidden perspectives shape everything: our decisions, our reactions and our sense of what's possible.
The Power of What We Don't See
Blindspots are beliefs operating just beyond our awareness. They're not flaws or defects, they're simply the natural result of being human. We all develop mental shortcuts and subconscious protective mechanisms throughout our lives.
Sometimes our blindspots show up as identity statements:
"I am not a leader."
"I'm too much to handle."
"I'm not creative."
"I have to do it alone."
“This is just how I am.”
When we accept these statements without question, they become self-fulfilling prophecies. They create boundaries around our potential that feel real and permanent.
The impact of blindspots extends far beyond our thoughts. They filter our experiences, influence our choices and create patterns that repeat throughout our lives - often the very patterns we wish we could change. And because blindspots exist outside our awareness, we rarely examine them until an external influence disrupts our thinking enough for us to question whether our perspective is the only perspective that exists.
This disruption is where the unravelling of our blindspots begins.
Finding What We Cannot See
Discovering our blindspots requires both internal reflection and external perspective.
We start by cultivating genuine curiosity about our assumptions. What if what feels like an absolute truth is actually simply a perspective? What might become possible if we loosened our grip on being so certain we are right?
However, internal work alone is rarely enough to reveal our blindspots. By definition, we cannot see them on our own. This is where other humans become essential. They notice our patterns, our contradictions, our defensive reactions. By simply asking the question, “What might I be missing that keeps me stuck in my rut?”
When we venture into a conversation about ourselves that isn’t led by our own mindset, we open the door for the possibility of something new. As once a blindspot is revealed, we are no longer blind to it - this is where our work begins…
From Awareness to Choice
Here’s a fact: People do not experience reality as it is, we experience our interpretation of reality. There are eight billion, and counting, people that exist on this planet. That means there are eight billion different interpretations of life, the world and our roles within it. That means a whole lot of blindspots!
Also a fact: When we recognize a blindspot, we can begin to catch it in action.
We start to ask questions like:
What meaning have I assigned to this situation?
What else could be possible here?
What story have I been telling myself?
A professional setback doesn't inherently mean we lack ability.
A challenging conversation isn't necessarily a personal attack.
A difficult relationship might be offering precisely the growth we need.
The moment we recognize we are the authors of meaning in our lives, we reclaim our agency.
We shift from being written by our blindspots to writing our own story.
Awareness creates choice. And choice creates possibility.
The Ongoing Journey
Working with blindspots isn't a one-time event but a lifelong practice, because even though we can’t unsee blindspots once we identify them, new blindspots emerge throughout our lives. We are, after all, human. And for as long as we are human (and on the path of self-discovery), we will continually create, and hopefully disrupt, our blindspots.
The more we develop the muscle of noticing when we are telling ourselves an unhelpful story or limiting our potential by believing our profound yet rapid-fire ‘I am’ statements, the more skilled we become at catching and observing blindspots at play.
The game of blindspots requires that we maintain curiosity about ourselves alongside other humans. Asking other trusted humans to be our blindspot buddies is one of the ways we remain at work.
Where to Start
Here are the places where blindspots typically reveal themselves:
Recurring challenges: When we face the same difficulties across different circumstances.
Strong emotional responses: Where our reactions seem disproportionate to the situation.
Persistent frustrations: When we feel stuck despite our best efforts to move forward.
Consistent feedback: When different people reflect similar observations about us over time.
We like to think of these moments as invitations, revealing where our unconscious patterns are ready to become conscious. We don't need to eliminate all blindspots (an impossible task), but rather develop the capacity to catch them quickly and respond with intention.
The practice of uncovering our blindspots and reframing our perspectives is not about fixing the parts of us that are ‘broken’, but rather about expanding what's possible.
The stories we’ve lived have never been fixed, they are simply the stories we have accepted as true. And because we wrote them, we can rewrite them.. The moment we uncover a blindspot, we reclaim the pen.
The question becomes: What story will you write next?
