The Power of Perspective
The way you view the world, or in other words your perspective, plays a large part in how fulfilling your life is.
“Successful people maintain a positive focus in life no matter what is going on around them. They stay focused on their past successes rather than their past failures, and on the next action steps they need to take to get them closer to the fulfillment of their goals rather than all the other distractions that life presents to them.” — Jack Canfield
Typically, our perspective are made up by a collection of experiences which dictate how we see the world. We have little control over the experiences that led us to where we are today. We can, however, choose not to let them control us.
You’ll likely find that there are a number of ways to look at any given situation.
You’ll find some ways that resonate more with your life experiences and you’ll find some that challenge you.
Below I will outline three key mindsets that will change your perspective and help you to live a more fulfilling life.
1. Compassion
Being kind and doing things for others often leads to positive feelings of accomplishment, meaning you’ll feel more fulfilled while also bringing genuine good to the world.
Many scientific studies have linked being compassionate to others to a number of positive benefits such as less stress, more career success, and even a longer life.
When you act from a mindset of compassion, you challenge yourself to improve the experience and condition of others. But you also allow yourself to empathize and be moved the experiences of others, providing you with the opportunity to appreciate what’s good in your life.
On Psychology Today, Dr. Emma M. Seppälä writes “A closer look at our own experiences as well as research data suggests that the secret to lasting happiness does not lie in any goods, relationships or achievements, but rather in what we can give: not just material gifts, but gifts of time, gifts of love, gifts of ourselves.
Compassion and service don’t just make us happy but they also have a host of other associated benefits and may even contribute to a longer life.”
As you go about your day, pause and ask how you might look at any given situation from a framework of compassion.
How can you share more, offer more, help more?
2. Intellectual Curiosity
With a mindset of intellectual curiosity, you’ll be able to learn from all of your experiences. This will lead to a more fulfilling life by empowering you to acknowledge that even unfortunate events gift you with valuable knowledge.
When you act with a mindset of intellectual curiosity, you ask yourself what you can learn from any given situation.
With enough practice, you’ll be able to find the blessing of all of your lessons. Intellectual curiosity also causes you to challenge your assumptions — even your assumptions about your potential.
You may find that you can handle more than you thought, and this is just one of the things you can learn by intellectual curious and learning from your challenges.
Dr. Michael Austin writes, “As children, we were naturally curious about almost everything. This may have annoyed our parents and teachers, but it is also an essential part of human development.
If we want to grow intellectually, morally, socially, and spiritually, we need to ask questions and seek answers. We need intellectual curiosity. At some point, however, many of us lost this initial curiosity. Perhaps we feared looking unintelligent or ignorant, or perhaps a peer in school mocked us for our curiosity. Fortunately, it is not too difficult to retrieve this trait.”
3. Enrichment
A mindset of enrichment will allow you to lead a more fulfilling life by enabling you to add value in every situation, opening doors to new opportunities. This mindset encourages you to use your internal thoughts and feelings to enrich the experiences of others.
It means challenging yourself to find out what it is that you can add uniquely and what it is you can do to help others. It is this mindset that allows us to find our purpose in any given situation since you have distinct talents and abilities that bring value to every situation you encounter.
Dr. Steven Stosny writes : –
“The experience of value gives a heightened sense of well being and vitality — you feel more alive looking at a beautiful sunset, feeling connected to a loved one, knowing genuine compassion for another person, having a spiritual experience, appreciating something creative, feeling committed to a cause or a group of people. Expansion of core value gives a greater sense of well being, authenticity, and connection to others. High value investment gives meaning, purpose, and vitality to life, with a stronger motivation to improve, create, build, appreciate, connect, or protect. It literally boosts the immune system and makes us physically healthier.”
We have the power change our perspective and embody a different mindset that can lead to drastically different outcomes. It’s not easy. You’re fighting against years of context that led you to view the world in a particular way. But if I learned anything from history class, it’s that humans have a remarkable ability to convince themselves anything if they have enough persistence.
A negative default mindset may be difficult to change, but not doing so could be costly. Furthermore, choosing your mindset allows you to find purpose and fulfillment in every situation regardless of the circumstances.
The way you embody a different mindset is to challenge yourself as often as possible with one essential question: how might I look this differently?
I’d like to conclude with a quote from my friend Anthony over at AuthenicGrowth.com
“There is so much that your mind does with the things that you think about. If we’re thinking about food, your mind will come up with solutions to get food (usually this is easy in present times, but it wasn’t always that way!). Using this same principle, if you’re focusing on ways you can become a better person, your mind will help you do this.
You will start noticing things that can help you become a better person around you. Things will start to stick out more that can help you. When your conscious mind is focused on something, your unconscious mind comes through and finds things that are similar to what you’re thinking about. Maybe a question will pop into your head that you never thought of before, and you will have a shift in perspective. All of these things are possible when you start to focus on what you want in life.”
DJ Jeffries is a motivation, wellness & lifestyle writer. He hosts the Hacking Happiness podcast on Apple Podcasts. For more information, visit his blog http://www.itsthemarq.com
Thanks for reading….
