🧠 Introduction: What You Notice is Not the Whole Truth
If you’ve ever scrolled your feed, joined a mastermind, or looked back on a missed opportunity and thought “How did I miss that?”, you’re not alone.
The truth is, you did miss it.
Not because you’re lazy or unqualified—but because you weren’t expecting to see it.
Just like a detective finds clues the tourist misses, your brain only shows you what it expects to find.
For creators and consultants 45+, with a lifetime of experience and conditioning, this is both a superpower and a risk.
Note from Mark: Discovering the deep state around 10 years ago was a massive shock to my belief system for me. I didn’t expect to see it and I often ask ‘why me?’ I do try to question everything now because I realise just how limited my perception was (and probably still is!) I studied Ancient History at school for A-level and the Greek philosopher Socrates, said, “I am the wisest man alive, for I know one thing, and that is that I know nothing”
🎯 The Science of Expectation and Perception
In neuroscience, this is called “predictive coding.”
Your brain isn’t a passive receiver of data—it’s a prediction machine. Based on past experience, it predicts what it expects to see, then filters sensory input accordingly.
That means:
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If you expect opportunities, you notice them.
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If you expect rejection, you spot threats.
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If you expect failure, you confirm it.
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If you expect engagement, you show up differently—and get it.
Your mental model literally becomes your business lens.
🔍 Reality: Why Midlife Entrepreneurs Need to Reset Filters
In your 40s, 50s, and beyond, you’ve built robust internal filters.
But here’s the thing: they may no longer serve you.
Maybe they protected you from risk in a corporate job. Or helped you survive tough years. But in the entrepreneurial realm, old filters can make you blind to:
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New tech that could 10x your productivity.
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Partnerships that don’t look like your “type.”
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Monetisation models beyond what you’ve known.
If your expectations are outdated, your perception—and progress—will be too.
🔄 The F.I.R.E. Framework to Rewire Your Mindset
Let’s apply the F.I.R.E. method (Frame – Insight – Reality – Experiment) to this quote:
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Frame: The world is too complex to perceive everything. Your mind simplifies by filtering. Expectation is the filter.
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Insight: Expectation is not neutral. It’s a lens. Change the lens, and the view—and your results—change too.
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Reality: For solopreneurs, this shows up as chronic content blindness (“what should I post?”), launch fatigue, or self-doubt in sales calls.
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Experiment: For the next 7 days, expect to see opportunities. Write down one each day. You’ll be surprised how they multiply.
🛠️ Tactical Application: How to Reset Your Expectation Filter
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Audit Your Inner Dialogue:
Catch phrases like “This probably won’t work” or “People don’t want this.” Rewrite them as experiments: “Let’s see how this lands.” -
Use Vision Priming:
Start your day reviewing your ideal outcome in one area (e.g. lead magnet downloads). Let that shape your content or outreach. -
Adopt an Opportunity Journal:
Each day, write down:-
1 unexpected upside
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1 challenge that contains opportunity
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1 new idea you noticed
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Build Expectation into Offers:
Your audience also filters what they see. If your CTA lacks clear expected results, they’ll scroll on. Make your outcome vivid and bold. -
Feedback Loop It:
Ask others what they see in your brand. Their perception can show you the blind spots in yours. ( A bit like ‘the girl in the red dress’ in the film ‘The Matrix’.)
🚀 Real Talk: You Don’t Need More Tactics. You Need Better Filters.
Your success as a midlife creator isn’t based on how much content you create, how perfect your funnel is, or how big your list is.
It’s about what you notice—and what you expect to notice.
Want better results? Expect them.
Then prove yourself right through action.
🧩 Journal Prompt:
What’s something you’ve overlooked in your business because you didn’t expect it to work?
Micro-Action: Test it on a small scale this week—post it, pitch it, or share it with one person.
This blog post was created by my GPT ‘Quote To Action‘ – the quotation was “You cannot hope to notice everything in the complex, dynamic world around you. What you do notice is based largely on your expectations.” — Unknown
