Do you need to put on your perspectacles?

Here’s a little experiment.

Read these instructions first and then give it a try.

Go stand in front of a wall.

Step as close to the wall as you can.

Now lean forward and put your nose against the wall.

Take note of what you can see.

Then take one step back from the wall and take note of what you can see.

Then turn around with your back to the wall.

What can you see now?

I actually want you to go try that before you keep reading.

Here’s the point:

Most of the day we are standing with our noses pressed up against the wall. It’s just a habit that we have created. We tend to look at things in the same way we always look at them, with a narrow field of vision. In essence we have blinders on.

And that means we limit ourselves.

We can’t see opportunities that are right in front of us.

We can’t build consensus with others because we can’t see their point of view.

We can’t get unstuck from where we are because possibilities seem out of sight.

How we look at things actually creates our reality.

But there’s a little flaw in that.

Our experience of anything is incomplete because we can’t pay attention to everything.

So our “reality” is flawed.

Add to that the modern problem of constant distraction and lots of times we are not consciously paying attention to anything at all. Our current perspective is only part of the whole picture.

What we need to do is remember to put on our perspectacles.

I love that word – perspectacles – it captures perfectly the idea of shifting the way we look at things.

Look at things differently and you will see different things.

That’s why making a habit of putting on your perspectacles is so important.

Your current perspective and the reality it creates either empowers you and moves you forward or it limits you and holds you back.

Your perspective either empowers you & moves you forward or it holds you back. Maybe you need to put on your perspectacles. Click To Tweet

Einstein so wisely observed:

You can’t solve a problem with the same mindset that created it.

Translation:

You have to have a shift in perspective in order to be able to see new or different possibilities.

The more flexible you can get at shifting perspectives, the more possibilities there are at your fingertips.

So how can you begin making it a habit to put on your perspectacles?

Start naming it.

Pause every so often and ask yourself what perspective you are holding – especially when things feel difficult, frustrating, irritating or stuck. Remind yourself that looking at things differently can’t hurt. You don’t have to adopt a new perspective necessarily – you just have to look through a new lens for a moment.

Step into the other person’s point of view.

Be curious about another way of thinking about things. Imagine what it’s like to be in someone else’s shoes. Maybe ask the other person to tell you more about their thinking and then listen open-heartedly. You don’t have to like it, just entertain it on for a minute.

Channel another perspective.

There are lots of sources of other perspectives. Think of people you admire and ask yourself what they would say about the situation.  I like to channel Einstein and the Dalai Lama. Both offer different and equally insightful ways of thinking about things. Or have a little fun. Imagining what Robin Williams would say always provides radical and out of the box ideas.

Put aside what you think you know.

We make assumptions all the time and they influence the judgments we make. Ask yourself, “What am I missing here?” Chances are there is a key piece of information you don’t have. Make your reality a little less flawed.

Get out of your comfort zone.

When we always think and do the same things, we become accustomed to the idea that our thoughts and actions are the “right way”. Put yourself in unfamiliar settings and then observe what is happening.

Thanks for reading and taking the time to comment, share, like, tweet &/or pin this article.

What’s your current perspective on perspectives?