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Home / Northern Advocate

Carolyn Hansen: The power of perception - change your perspective, change your life

Carolyn Hansen
By Carolyn Hansen
Northern Advocate columnist·Northern Advocate·
26 Mar, 2019 01:00 AM5 mins to read

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We, and our entire world, are a product of our thoughts. Photo / Getty Images

We, and our entire world, are a product of our thoughts. Photo / Getty Images

HEALTH BY CHOICE

How you perceive the world, those living in it, and the circumstances that appear in your life matters, and every event and happening that occurs is open to many interpretations.

It's not what happens or who appears in your life that matters, but how you interpret and consciously act or subconsciously react, and that is the result of your personal perceptions.

Is your glass half full or half empty? Do you "see" the world as a wonderful place offering endless and fascinating adventures and opportunities, or do you view life as dangerous, deceitful and out to get you?

How do you view your friends and family, your associates and the strangers who appear in your life? Do you perceive them as positive or negative influencers in your life? What titles, positive or negative, has your subconscious mind adopted and assigned to them?

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This principle of perception is vitally important to understand if you ever hope to sculpt the life of your dreams because how you perceive anything or anyone, is what it or they become to you. And, unfortunately, once negative titles have been assigned to anything or anyone, you will continue to perceive them this way until you consciously shift your perceptions.

The truth is, everything we experience in life is up for interpretation and how we interpret it (our perceptions) dictates our feelings and our actions or reactions.

Wherever energy goes, creation flows. In other words, "whatever our focus lies on comes alive." Photo / Getty Images
Wherever energy goes, creation flows. In other words, "whatever our focus lies on comes alive." Photo / Getty Images

Wherever energy goes, creation flows. In other words, "whatever our focus lies on comes alive". If we want to attract good, then that's what we must focus on, see and perceive.

We must "BE" what we want to see or experience because we attract what we resonate. Focusing on what we don't like only attracts more of the same because it's all about our energy signature. It's our voice telling the Universe what we want more of.

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Although perceptions create our world, most people are not aware of the power they wield to create the life of their dreams. Because of this lack of knowledge, this powerful principle is used to create more negative than positive in many lives.

If your world is not expressing how you would like it to, it's time to trace the problem and fix it.

For example, do you desire to be healthier but can't seem to motivate yourself to eat better or exercise consistently even though you know in your heart that's what is required?

Change the way you see things, and you will change your life. You must examine your subconscious thoughts that are defining your perceptions, search out and eliminate the negative ones, the ones that are blocking you from doing what you know is best.

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Maybe you view exercise as a punishment for overeating or possibly you view it as a chore. If so, you've put exercise into a negative light and that's what it becomes to you. Shift that perception and begin viewing exercise as the quickest and surest way to optimum health and longevity and the quickest route into those "skinny" jeans you've been waiting to wear and watch how much easier it is to participate!

Although perceptions create our world, most people are not aware of the power they wield to create the life of their dreams. Photo / Getty Images
Although perceptions create our world, most people are not aware of the power they wield to create the life of their dreams. Photo / Getty Images

This places a positive light on exercise, motivating you rather than deflating you.
Is gratitude and appreciation the name of your game or is self-pity the tyrant that rules? Only you can answer that truthfully. One opens your eyes to beauty and the other clouds it over with fear.

The next time you encounter someone or something that normally agitates or irritates you or brings out anything but a loving response, shift your perception and gently but firmly guide your thoughts down the path of positivity and love no matter what your outer senses relay. This exercise is powerful enough to change your world and it empowers you as a master, someone who acts rather than reacts. Someone in control.

In truth, we are entitled to all the success, happiness and health we desire in life, but we must first stop defeating and limiting ourselves by entertaining our reactionary, deceptive, self-sabotaging beliefs.

Life is a continuance of exciting opportunities if we simply open our eyes to see them. We must become mindful and aware in the moment and view life from a fresh perspective. We must remove the blinkers and blinders we've put in place and examine our perceptions about the people that play roles in our life, large or small, and focus only on the positive. It's not always easy, but the outcome is worth it.

Our goal should be to clean up our minds, eliminate all limiting, negative, destructive thoughts and replace them with healthy, loving, positive, self-assuring, confidence-building, self-empowering thoughts, so that our creations and thus our lives, become what we want and desire them to be rather than what we fear.

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Once we've changed our perceptions to positive, healthier, happier options, our body chemistry and the outcome changes as well because they are all linked together. It is a natural progression that can't be stopped because we are not separate from our thoughts. We, and our entire world, are a product of our thoughts.

* Carolyn Hansen is co-owner of Anytime Fitness.

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