This is a book review of a book called, “Did you Spot the Gorilla’ written by Richard Wiseman. The book teaches you how to recognize hidden opportunities and make use of them.

Have a Primed Mind

Problems can be solved much more easily when you have a primed mind and you’re giving yourself time and freedom to solve them. You can do this by writing down your goal on a piece of paper, making it as simple and specific as possible. Now that your mind is primed, start working on the problem normally like you would before you read this blog post. If you can’t solve the problem then take a break working on it, but keep your mind open for new opportunities that can solve your problem. This way you might find unexpected solutions to your problem that you would’ve never thought of otherwise.

Using Different Perspectives

Another way to solve problems faster and better is to come up with solutions from different perspectives. This way you can come up with more creative solutions by not using the same solutions that always come to mind. You can do this by writing solutions from different perspectives and eventually you will find one that works. If you can’t come up with any solutions, try to think of a solution to the problem while pretending to be a chef, artist, child, etc. This solution uses creativity from different perspectives to find hidden opportunities.

Don’t Become Stressed

Becoming stressed makes your brain constrained which limits your abilities to spot hidden opportunities. The way to see the bigger picture and not get stuck focusing on small things is to relax. If you know you’re stressed then take a break for 15 minutes and do anything that makes you relax, reading a book, a walk in the park, deep breathing, etc. After this, your brain is not any more constrained and you should be able to see the bigger picture in the project you’re working on.

Getting out of Autopilot

When your things become very familiar, like in your house you stop noticing and thinking about them. This is your brain going to autopilot mode. When your brain is in autopilot mode you can miss hidden opportunities. You can switch from autopilot to manual mode by being curious, even about familiar things. You can become more curious by asking yourself interesting questions and answering them. This allows you to become more alert to everything around you.