I was checking out Seth Godin’s blog and came across this post entitled simply “Full.” His point is well stated:

I think people are full. They have too much to do, too much on their plates, no room for new ideas, new tasks and new challenges (or at least they think they’re full). So when all those ads are hurled at them, they ignore them. They ignore them because they can, and because they don’t perceive that they have a problem that the ad will help them solve.

He’s talking about the deluge of political advertisements this election season. I blogged about the way this type of advertising can affect credibility, but when you look at it from a marketing perspective, which is what Seth’s blog is all about, this makes a lot of sense. He goes on to say:

And then suddenly, election day arrives (or you run out of flour or need to hire a consultant or fly on a plane to Singapore or whatever). And now you have a problem. You don’t know how to choose. So you let some ideas in. You’re momentarily unfull, and then, when you’re full again, you go back to ignoring the world.

This really struck me as being true in a larger sense than just politics or marketing. We receive so much sensory input each day that we can’t possibly process it all. This is what being ‘full’ is all about. We can only soak up a certain amount before we can’t take anymore. It’s like pouring water into a cup. The cup only holds so much and soon begins to overflow.

So what does this mean? In Seth’s post, he’s saying that we stop listening after we become full and then only start to listen again, or open ourselves to new information, once we have a problem that needs to be solved. Isn’t that an interesting way to look at human existence? A series of problems that need to be resolved.

Problems might be too strong a word, though. We have needs that we want to have fulfilled. We open ourselves to looking for solutions in the environment around us as these needs present themselves.

The information that’s there when we open ourselves back up is what will most likely be what we accept and process and then incorporate into the solution to our needs. The ad that’s in front of us when we realize we need new tires is much more likely to be the one that gets our attention.

So what do we do with this knowledge? In the context of Seth’s article, he’s talking about repetition and this is how it works. Companies hope to put themselves and their products in front of you often enough that they happen to be there when you discover you need them. If you want to sell something then, a product, a service, or even an idea, the timing and the perception of need are vital to your success. Taking these factors into consideration will greatly improve your chances.