Reality versus Perception

Greetings Everyone,

It has been my belief for some time now that the way we perceive things has a much greater impact in how we experience life than reality itself does.

Take, for example, two different people experiencing the very same situation and, while one individual falls into despair and is unable to cope, the other one grows and learns from the experience, becoming wiser and stronger and grateful for the lessons learned through such experience. The events experienced were the same, therefore, reality was presented the same way to both, yet their perception was completely different, dictating what they took from the experience and how they reacted.

I have read about psychological models, which are our individual representation of the universe. Like a map is to a territory, a model is a representation of our realities. A good map is not the territory, but will lead you through it, showing where to turn and where not to turn. Likewise, our representation (perception) of the world is not the world (reality) but, if it isn't too distorted, it will provide us with the tools needed in order to navigate through life smoothly and easily. Allowing us to always make the best out of the situations we experience.

Basically, we are limited by our interpretations, the way we perceive things. It is said that, no matter how crazy someone's actions may appear, that individual, at that particular moment, chose what appeared to be the best possible choice available to him or her. Keeping this in mind, if we are able to expand someone's psychological model so that he or she can see more of the available options and make better choices, that is an incredible tool. And why not improve our own models of the universe so we can see it from a better perspective and make our lives more pleasurable?

Well, here is my food for thought. Ponder this.

Regards,
Clara