My cool perception of reality - what's yours?

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A few years ago, I was living in North Africa on the edge of the Sahara. It was hot and dusty every single day. Temperatures were often in the high 40C's. For 9-10 months of the year, there was no rain at all and then in the rain season - well even then, it didn't rain every day. When it did rain work stopped and the children would come out on to the streets in excitement.

A few years later, I was in London, UK. I was fortunate to have arranged for some of North African children from some of the families I knew, to visit London - their first time in Europe. It was a cool summer day and it started to rain. The children started dancing on the street in excitement. I looked around to see who might be watching and the local Londoners were in too much of a hurry to notice these children wondering in excitement at the rain. What I noticed though, was the pain and disgust on the Londoners' faces as they hurried past, hating the fact that the rain had spoilt what should have been a lovely day.

The same rain, completely different reactions.

We, humans, are complex beings who build up our own images of reality based on the vast experiences that we have had in our lifetimes. These vary so much for person to person based on our family, friends, culture, upbringing and education. In fact, a quick experience that lasts a matter of seconds can have such an impact on us that it changes our perceptions of reality.

So no wonder we are all so different - we all have such different experiences. These experiences over time have changed our perceptions of reality so that we can perceive the same event in a completely different way.

Just like with the London rain, for some, it immediately brings back our memories of lost opportunities, shivering cold moments and other negative thoughts. For others, it brings back different happier memories and stirs up positive emotions.

So what is the reality? Is the London rain a pleasant or a horrible experience? Well, they say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. There is no correct answer to which is the true reality but rather we make our own reality based on our individual perceptions.

So, if we all have such different perceptions of reality based on the rich experience we have all had, then who is to say that their perception of reality is correct. So don't we need to cut each other a bit of slack in life? If someone has a different opinion on something. You believe you are right and they believe they are right. Their opinion is only based on their own perceptions. So instead of judging people quickly and dismissing their viewpoints, it is much more interesting to try to understand their perception of the world.

In business, we often see confrontations and disagreements between different parties. Each vigorously defending their viewpoint and thinking that they are right. If however, we can open our minds to first understand the perceptions of others by listening to their views before we try to push our own arguments then we may actually find an even better way. This is why diversity is such a powerful thing in the workplace. It can enrich our perception of reality by mixing it with different experiences. So don't feel threatened by views of others. Use their different views as an opportunity to understand how they have formed their perspective on an issue. This can often lead to new solutions to the problems that neither side thought possible.

The other day, I was once again walking down the street in the rain and saw the painful expressions on the faces walking past. I remembered the children dancing in the rain and first a smile came to my face, and then an insane laugh came out from me. These days, I love the rain and every time it makes me happy. My perception of reality is way cooler.

Image source: Pexels



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11 comments
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This post made my day and it makes perfect sense if you think about perception itself. What the same event may mean to different people. And how with just a little imagination, what seems like nothing, can turn into something wonderful.

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Hi @evernoticethat - This is true, and the thing is, our perception is our choice. We can choose to apply that imagination and see the same event and turn it into something wonderful.

Thanks for your comment.

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Humans vary and so are our choices different. What interests me might not interest you and vice versa. These diversities form our different realities and these can be traceable to culture, experience, background, etc.

Nice piece here buddy

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hi @samminator - Thanks for your comment. I believe these diversities enrich us as there is so much we can learn from each other.

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We have a lot in common, glad to see this kind of post trending 😀

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La verdad es la maxima exprecion, de la realidad, me agrado, gracias por compartir.

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Hi @prm4031 - thanks for dropping by and leaving a comment. Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

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