Living with Perception

"Perception is reality" This is a phrase that can mark you quickly and cause you to create a filter to see the world in a way that that may be distorted. I have an acquaintance that whenever they talk about a family member they say, "You know how they are, a lot of talk but not much action." I have been guilty of looking at whole divisions on a business and saying, "The whole group just doesn't care and refuses to change." Or simply moving through traffic and your perception, "IDIOT, SLOW, CLUELESS!" creates a reality.

This is what I have found.

Perception creates a:
- Belief about someone that is usually negative
- Reality in me that may not be true
- Wall that allows me to stay frustrated and not attempt to find a solution
- Belief that I am right and others are very wrong

Perceptions need to be Private and never shared with the individual or group you have them about or you may be confronted with a fact that disrupts your fiction. On the other hand, perceptions can be shared with others all the time to promote your own perception and attract people to wallow with you in your negative feelings.

Blow your perceptions up! Confront them and you may find that a portion can be valid ted with reality but often very little is true and a way forward takes shape and you can become a problem solver not a perception maker.

Break down perceptions by:
- Building a closer relationship with the person or entity to better understand their motivations
- Confronting your own personal objective of why you built the perception in the first place (to feel superior, create a wall so you don't need to build a relationship, insecurity around the person)
- Look for reasons your perception is not correct and begin to break down the perception with fact
- Moving on from the need to set the perception by focusing your energy elsewhere in a positive direction

Being thankful, valuing relationships, being a problem solver and positive force leave very little time to create perceptions that bring you down.