Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once in a while, or the light won't come in.

Your invisible filters block the light

We walk around with invisible glasses on, shaped by everything we've absorbed—what our parents believed, what we've read, what happened to us. The problem is, we forget they're there. We think we're seeing reality directly, when really we're seeing it through a filter so old and familiar we can't remember installing it.

This matters because the moment you stop questioning an assumption, it hardens into fact in your mind. You stop hiring people from certain backgrounds because you "just know" they won't fit. You dismiss an idea because it contradicts something you decided was true years ago. You assume your friend's silence means anger, or that success requires sacrifice, or that you're not a creative person. These aren't neutral observations—they're barriers that keep new possibilities, information, and experiences from actually reaching you.

The non-obvious part? Your assumptions aren't the problem. You need them to function—your brain would collapse under the weight of constantly questioning everything. The trick is treating them lightly. Pick one assumption you've held for years and genuinely ask: "What if I'm wrong about this?" You might not change your mind. But you'll let some light back in, and that's where growth actually happens.