The Importance of Observation

In this Sherlock Holmes speech, Maria Konnikova discusses mindfulness and the importance of observing and focusing. Konnikova explains that attention is finite, and so what one pays attention to becomes incredibly important. She uses Sherlock Holmes as an example of a character who optimizes his mental resources.

Konnikova states that Holmes decides what he hopes to get out of a meeting before he has it, and that primes his mind to focus on some things while ignoring others. Konnikova says that the mind can only store so much information and she claims that what one stores and how they store it is extremely important.

Konnikova compares the human mind to an attic that occasionally needs to be cleaned out. Before walking into an event or a meeting, she suggests clearing one's mind of everything except for the situation at hand. This will help keep focus where it should be.