This is the fourth post in a series that I dedicate to the topic of improving ones skills by changing the way one looks at the world. It is inspired by a book called "How to think like Leonardo Da Vinci" by Michael Gelb, which shows that many principles we try to apply today were already know by the grand master of the Renaissance.

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People are talented, willing and able to learn. By fostering curiosity, and enabling experience, everyone can develop oneself and create an environment in which other people thrive, too. While the first two principles of Leonardo Da Vinci (Curiosità & Dimostrazione) apply to yourself and the way you lead / treat the people around you, the third one is a very personal one.

Sensazione, as per Michael Gelb, describes Leonardo's desire to sharpen his senses. And it is something that could and should act as a reminder to all of us who hurry through our days, running from one appointment to another. We sometimes feel like we don't have time to sit still and focus on our senses - but we don't need much time for this, we just need to be aware, awake, and live the moment.

An quote attributed to Da Vinci seems to match today's world despite having been written centuries ago. The average human "looks without seeing, listens without hearing, touches without feeling, eats without tasting, moves without physical awareness, inhales without awareness of odour or fragrance, and talks without thinking".

The experiences we seek to broaden our horizon (dimostrazione) allow us to see new shapes, hear new sounds, touch unknown surfaces, taste and smell foreign things - if we're open to it. In order to take the most out of our curiosity, we need to sharpen our senses.

When was the last time you went out the door in the morning and reflected on what the air smelled like? When did you last actively recognize to the change in tone, when your friend talked about something that excited her? Do you remember what sounds you heard when you watched the beautiful sunset during your last vacation?

As human beings the only thing that connects our brain to the outside world is our senses. Actively working with them will help us process those signals better, and learn more.

On a side note, I was fascinated to read that even Leonardo Da Vinci in the 16th century used Visualization as an element to his practice of learning. "I have found in my own experience, that it is of no small benefit when you lie in bed in the dark to go over again in the imagination the outlines of the forms you have been studying or of other noteworthy things conceived by subtle speculation, …"

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Please share your comments and inputs (via comment function, twitter, e-mail, etc.). In my short write-ups I address topics that I am particularly interested in because they align with my values and beliefs. As such, they are always a reflection of my ideas, thoughts, and opinions. The only thing I am positive in that regard is that I do not have all the perspectives, all the knowledge, or all the facts - help me be better tomorrow.