What is your perspective? What type of lenses are you looking through? Do you generally see problems or possibilities?
With fluctuations in the economy, the backdrop of multiple wars and the tempestuous weather showing us evidence of global warming, change is clearly in the air. For many people the uncertainty of what will come can be quite stressful. However, as the Chinese saying goes: “Crisis is an incipient moment (when something begins or changes).” The outcome will depend on your perspective, which in turn will drive your choices.
As John Lobbock said: “What we see depends on what we look for.” In fact, this is true. Psychologists call it selective perception. Since there is so much stimuli coming at us we choose what we hear and see to suit our needs. Just as a photographer uses various lenses to show “reality” in different ways, we each have a set of filters — experience, culture, economic status, mental and physical health, etc. — through which we see the world. Therefore, if life constantly looks dismal to you, it could be your perspective.
Your viewpoint shapes your thoughts, decisions, actions — and ultimately, your feeling of success. For example, have you ever wondered why people in some of the poorest parts of the world seem happier than those in the wealthiest nations? It’s probably because they view life through the values-lenses of health and family versus wealth and fame. Of course, those choices are not mutually exclusive. However, if you lose the latter you can recover, if you lose the former you’re truly lost. Remember a time when your perspective changed dramatically, such as falling in love or a death in the family. In an instant, your orientation shifted. What you placed in focus was different. The world may have looked brighter, or dimmer. You may have been prompted to action. If you just welcomed the birth of your first child, for example, you may start thinking about the quality of the local school system or have the impetus to leave work earlier.
If you are experiencing a challenging time right now, think about how you can shift your perspective. If you’ve lost your job, maybe it’s an opportunity to go back to school or turn your hobby into a business. If you must reduce your spending, maybe it’s an opportunity to streamline your entire life and spend more time around the dinner table with your family. If you have received a diagnosis, perhaps it’s a reminder of the importance of healthy living. Taking an optimistic viewpoint of the chaos in our external world, maybe it’s time for all of us to go inside ourselves and reevaluate our core values. It may even usher us into a new spiritual paradigm where the currency is how many people we can inspire versus how many things we can acquire (see “The Power Living Manifesto”).
The Yoga Sutras teach us that the entire world is our own projection, and that things outside neither bind nor liberate us; only our attitudes toward them does that. For example, think about the belief that “life is hard.” If you operate from this assumption, everything you do will seem like a struggle. You look for challenges in every situation, potentially creating your own roadblocks. Instead, if you turn that around to “I am meant to succeed,” then you open your mind to new ideas. As my yoga lineage guru Sri Swami Satchidananda said, “There’s nothing wrong with the world. You can make it heaven or hell according to your approach.”
The ability to reframe a situation is an important skill that can transform your life and our world. Today, take time to clear your lenses so you can view life from a higher perspective.
Action steps:
Choose to take at least one action to make a difference in your life today. Here are some suggestions:
Be a neutral observer. When a situation occurs, don’t immediately judge it. Take a deep breath and take yourself out of it. Try to see it from multiple angles.
Take an optimist viewpoint. Look for the opportunity in a seemingly “bad” situation.
Deliberately test out a new perspective. Next time you are in a traffic jam, don’t fret about “wasted” time. Use it as a chance to meditate or do some isometric exercises.
Be grateful for what you have. Next time you think you have it bad, think about those who have it worse. Remember the Denis Waitely quote: “I had the blues because I had no shoes until upon the street, I met a man who had no feet.”
Offer your services to someone who could benefit from your talents. This may change their perspective as well as your own.
Keep a “belief journal.” Write down your core values and beliefs. Determine which ones serve you and which ones don’t. Constantly review it and make adjustments.
Affirmation:
The second principle of Power Living is “Tune Your Mind to the Positive,” and one technique we use with clients is affirmation. Here’s one to help shift your perspective:
Today, I have an optimistic view on life. I look for the opportunity in every situation. I accept new ideas and viewpoints. I know that all is working for my highest good. I understand that the outside world is based on my thoughts and mental attitude. If I control my mind and frame of reference, I have controlled everything… in my control. Today, I have an optimistic view on life.
Teresa Kay-Aba Kennedy – “Dr. Terri K.”
What do you get when you cross a Harvard MBA and a Doctor of Philosophy in World Religions with a Holistic Health Counselor?
Quite a bit of yin-yang! After almost dying from an ulcerated digestive system in her twenties, Teresa Kay-Aba Kennedy realized that her Type-A workaholic tendencies might be good for the bottom-line, but not for her spirit or health. The process of rebuilding herself – mind, body, and spirit – unveiled her calling. A few years later, when she decided to leave her lucrative media career to become a social entrepreneur and health advocate, most people thought she had lost her mind. Instead, she found her Self. Now, her mission is to help people from all walks of life, live better lives.
She is President of Power Living Enterprises, Inc., a business & lifestyle consulting company which helps individuals, businesses and communities make purposeful choices that create long-term sustainability. She is also the Founder of Ta Yoga, which operates one of the first yoga studios in Harlem, and Chair of the Board of Yoga Alliance – the internationally-recognized non-profit organization that sets standards for yoga teaching in the United States. A leading expert on Health and Productivity Management, she was named National Ambassador for the American Heart Association in 2008 representing them in the media with a focus on their “Search Your Heart” campaign.
“Power Living is being spiritually connected, mentally focused, physically energized, emotionally engaged, and environmentally supported. It is a way of being that allows life to flow. It is committing your energy to what you care about on a day-to-day basis.”
The practice is guided by Five Principles, each of which represents the five dimensions, which are all inter-related:
1. Live on Purpose (spiritual)
2. Tune your Mind to the Positive (mental)
3. Honor Your Body (physical)
4. Be a Humble Warrior (emotional)
5. Sanctify your Surroundings (environmental)
The Power Living Pledge
I live on Purpose every day;
I look to my Creator to show me the way.
I choose thoughts that nurture my mind;
I eliminate views that are negative and unkind.
I honor my body as the temple of my soul;
I choose foods that are nourishing and whole.
I serve my Self, and others with Love;
showing gratitude to my Source above.
I seek order, simplicity and peace,
creating space for my blessings to increase.
I choose wisely in all I do, prioritizing
my energy to live authentically and true.
I pursue every task with conviction;
I view unconscious inaction as an affliction.
I am fully Present, living as if,
this is the last day for me to enjoy my Gift.
I take time to Pause and Play,
giving balance and joy no delay.
I live these power-filled principles every day;
I do my best to get out of the way!
Purposeful and Powerful, indeed! :-)
