In much the same way that you are what you do repeatedly, the world is what you pay attention to repeatedly.
Some scientist once estimated that we each receive something like 11 million bits of information per second about our world and bodies, but that we are only able to attend to about 40 bits of the 11 million. Even if those numbers suck and are way off, the point is that your Attentional Filter is incredibly limited, and your world (and thus your life) is made up of what you’re consciously aware of.
Source
- Hyperfocus
- Myself