If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.
— Wayne Dyer
Have you ever been completely surprised to find out that someone else has an entirely different opinion about an experience you shared together? Or maybe they remember something in a completely different way, or have a different take on a specific social issue.
We each get so caught up in our personal narrative of life and the world around us that we can easily forget that so much of that narrative is determined by our personal interpretation of things. We bring a host of beliefs, experiences and expectations to the table and they all color our perception.
This does not mean that our beliefs, experiences and expectations are bad. It does mean that our opinions and perceptions about events, people and the world at large are greatly affected by how we choose to look at and experience the world.
The bad thing about this is that it means it is easy to disagree with people about matters we think are clear as day. The good thing about this is it means that we have within us the power to choose how our experiences affect us. We can reframe the narrative of our past experiences. We can come to view hardships as opportunities instead of obstacles. We can change challenges from crutches into launchpads.
We have the power to determine the narrative. We have the power to turn every experience into something that has been for our benefit.
We just need to change how we look it things.
What experiences in your past have held you back or limited your growth? How can you reframe those experiences? What did they help you learn? What personal traits did they help grow? If it is hard to see the good in the experiences, how can they help you make better choices in the future?