For a quick recap of what cognition is in human design and how to figure out what yours is, check out the smell post, the first installment of this series.
OUTER VISION COGNITION
Outer vision cognition is the fourth of six cognition tones.
- Smell
- Taste
- Inner vision
- Outer vision (⬅️ You are here!)
- Feeling
- Touch
In contrast to inner vision, which is more about your internal visualization, outer vision is about, well, you guessed it – what you’re seeing externally.
With outer vision, how your surroundings appear to you is very important. Whereas inner vision is about the dreaming up of things inside your mind before they’re in your physical reality, outer vision is about taking those visions and putting them into your external reality.
I find it helpful to contrast with inner vision, so to compare a bit more: For manifesting, with inner vision you can hold the vision or the “dream” inside your mind; with outer vision, it might be more helpful to have something external to you that you can physically look at, like a vision board.
Ultimately, the aesthetics of the environment and spaces you’re in are going to impact the ease with which you can tap into your intuition and perceive all the intuitive information you’re receiving.
If your environment is not visually appealing to you (based on YOUR preferences), you might feel this in your energy, your mood, your ability to focus, your sense of calm or peace, etc.
Your outer vision super sense could apply to anything you see externally, like clothing, the decor of the space you’re in, the architecture surrounding you where you live, the food on your plate, or even the cinematography of a film you’re watching.
In addition to the literal aspects of what you see around you, outer vision is also about seeing how things come together in the 3D physical reality. It’s about bringing the internal into the external world. Acting on a plan, achieving a goal, experiencing something “in real life” that you’ve previously only imagined – your outer vision can come into play in all of these areas.
WHAT IF MY HUMAN DESIGN SUPER SENSE IS OUTER VISION AND I HAVE A VISUAL IMPAIRMENT?
What if your physical vision abilities are, you can strengthen your cognition and experience the benefits of a heightened or more sensitive super sense based on your human design.
Everything in human design is largely energetic, so however you are physically able to see your external environment, you will definitely feel the energetics of the space you’re in.
Our physical vision is just another channel for taking in information, and even if you cannot receive visual information through your eyes – or you receive a different level of information through your eyes, your energetic body is always able to tell you what you need to know about your surroundings.
You can also always lean on your other senses to make choices about how you want your external space to be. For example, do you want hard or soft textures? Tight or open spaces? How do certain objects or colours affect your mood, energy, or mental focus? What about the brightness or darkness of a space, or the sounds surrounding you?
You will know best which ways of experimenting with your space work for you, and there are tons of ways to get creative with this to find what helps you feel best and help you tap into your intuition more deeply.
FACTORS INFLUENCING YOUR SUPER SENSE
As with everything in human design, your cognition, or super sense, doesn’t exist in a silo. Everything is interconnected.
The influence is not unidirectional either. For example, your environment can have a big impact on the strength or sensitivity of your super sense, and as you sharpen your super sense, you may notice you become even more sensitive to your environment.
With external vision, the environment-cognition relationship could be heightened, since this particular super sense is so tied to your external surroundings. So, regardless of what your environment type is, it will be important for you to enjoy the look and energetic feel of it.
To find your environment, I recommend getting your free chart via geneticmatrix.com (*affiliate link – you’ll only need to create a free account) or myhumandesign.com (no account needed, but it’s recommended to save your chart!).
The chart at My Human Design (run by another great HD resource, Jenna Zoe), shows your four variables (AKA the four arrows at the top of your chart) in an intuitive way and tells you quite clearly what your environment is.
In Genetic Matrix, you’ll need to switch to the “Design” view (the default view is “Quantum”). This view will tell you your super sense and your environment.
Determination (how you take in information, AKA “digestion”), is another important factor influencing your super sense (look for “digestion” on your chart from My Human Design).
It is how you best “digest” information, so this would apply to how you digest/perceive intuitive information, as well.
Then our strategy and authority come into play to guide us in making decisions about all of this information we’re perceiving.
INSPIRE YOUR OUTER VISION SUPER SENSE
It’s time to play!
With outer vision, pay attention to how what you see (literally or figuratively) impacts you in any way. Remember that this is your experiment so this is about what works for you. Someone else with outer vision cognition might find completely different things appealing. And that is AMAZING. The many possibilities are what make this experiment so fun and exciting!
Here are some ways you can inspire your outer vision super sense. These are just starting points, and I encourage you to follow your curiosity and find interesting ways to excite your super sense!
- Start with mood boards (a recommendation for inner vision, as well), but don’t keep these virtual for too long. Find ways to bring what you see into your physical space.
- Whenever you’re in a new space, give yourself some time to really notice what’s around you and what you feel in your body as a result. Have a running note in your phone or journal to document anything that stands out, either in a pleasing, neutral, or unpleasant way. Can you tune into this even more and see what comes up?
- Repeat this process for spaces you already know you enjoy or don’t enjoy being in (I’m not recommending you keep yourself in spaces you don’t like for too long, but it’s a good exercise to tune in and figure out what specifically makes you not like that space!).
- Celebrate past and current accomplishments – things you once saw for yourself more internally and that you brought into your physical reality.
- Stroll through places like Ikea or interior design boutiques to get ideas about external visuals. This can work with museums, galleries, open houses, etc., as well.
- Browse hotel galleries and Airbnbs and reflect on the places that make you want to visit or stay there.
- Browse libraries or book shops and pay attention to the book covers that draw you in. Do the covers make you want to read the book? Do the covers match the descriptions in your eyes?
PRACTICE USING YOUR SUPER SENSE + QUESTIONS FOR PERSONAL REFLECTION
Strengthening your cognition/super sense – and your intuition – is all about working that muscle. This means practicing what you’re learning about and experimenting with what works for you.
- Change your furniture around or mix up the art in your home.
- When you first wake up, take a few minutes to look around you. What stands out first? What do you feel the urge to pass over quickly? Is there anything that seems more vibrant than usual? Or is there anything that feels like it’s missing?
- What do you notice constantly? For example, have you seen something in a dream that you now see everywhere? Is there something on your vision board that keeps showing up around you? What visual things feel synchronistic?
- What do you see in your life/reality? What do you love? What are you grateful for? Is there anything you would change?
- Do you have a current goal or vision? How do you see it coming together? How can you take action towards bringing this into your tangible reality?
- When/where do you feel calm/excited/energized/tired/etc? What do you notice about your surroundings when you feel this way?
- What (kinds of) spaces are you consistently drawn to? What kinds of spaces do you avoid? Can you pinpoint why?
Have you tried any of these? What did you think? Or what else have you tried that really worked for you? Leave a comment below and share your experience!
And feel free to check out my top human design posts.
