There's a form of digital art called 'infinite zoom' that takes what looks like a still image and creates a video that continues to zoom in, showing more detail. These images have a hypnotic effect that keeps you focused at the center of the image so that you lose sight of the broad image as you are focusing on the minute details being revealed. We do the same thing as we problem-solve various aspects of our lives. We continue asking "why" until we find the root cause of an issue so that we can intervene effectively.
Sometimes, we get stuck in the "zoom in" and become hyperfocused on the problem, which takes over our vision field. After an intervention has been implemented, it's essential to shift our perspective and make sure we begin to zoom out. Remaining hyperfocused on a problem and how often it occurs prevents us from looking broadly and seeing the progress being made. Suppose we put an intervention in place for disruptive behavior because it happens frequently throughout the day. In that case, it's easy to reflect on the day and remember keenly all the times it happened. However, if we zoom out, we often find that it happened only 10% of the time that it used to.
Zooming out lets us celebrate the growth and maintain momentum with effective interventions. It also allows us to shift our focus to other details or areas that need to be addressed.
As we move through the spring semester, find areas of your life where you can shift to a broad focus and celebrate the growth and beauty surrounding you.
