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Perspective

Writer's picture: StephenStephen

I found the following quote a while back (wish I had written down where it came from!) and have been reflecting on it quite a bit recently.


"People see the results of my decisions but they don't see the choices I was faced with."


I know! It's good, right?!?


It's made me think a lot about perspective lately.  We all have our own unique perspectives and so much of the time we tend to look at others through the lens of our perspective. We think about the kinds of choices they have made through our own lens, which often lead us into a judgmental space toward them. But when we see them only from our perspective, we usually are only seeing the results of their decisions and not really considering the choices they were faced with in the process. 


And then I came across this picture. 


If we were walking down this street together and were told we each had to pick only 1 door to enter, most likely we wouldn't choose the same door. We would each be drawn to different ones based on our personal preferences and our backgrounds. I might even be surprised at which door you would pick and be tempted to think, "what a weird/strange/poor choice" but, that would be because I was only looking at those choices through my perspective, not trying to understand you or your perspective any better!


That got me thinking about an organization I work with whose mission statement starts with the words, "With Kindness...." What an incredible kindness it is toward others when we attempt to adjust our perspective, maybe even just the slightest bit, to attempt to imagine what someone else's perspective might be!  I know what it feels like when someone comes at me with judgement first, but I also know how powerful it is when they approach me with curiosity, and they attempt to better understand my perspective and the kinds of choices I may have faced that resulted in my decisions. That feels like a true gift of kindness!


What kind of a difference did it make in your life when you were met with judgement first, compared to times when someone tried to approach you with curiosity and a desire to better understand your perspective? Are there certain people you encounter on a regular basis that you realize you are approaching them from your perspective with more judgement than curiosity, and what would it look like for you to adjust your perspective so you tried to better understand life from their view?  When someone chooses a different door than you, maybe you could respond with a simple "Why did you pick that one?" or maybe, "Tell me more about what drew you to that choice?"


Here's to adjusting our perspective toward greater kindness this week (even if it's just a little bit)!


Be Well,

Stephen


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