06
2011
Guest Post: Getting Perspective
Today's guest post is from Christina, who is currently working at the Inspire USA office, about gaining perspective and how it can help you. Read more about Christina at the end of the post! A friend of mine cancelled on me about an hour before we were supposed to go for a walk. I was aggravated and annoyed that this friend was not being considerate or respectful of my time. Another friend who I turned to for advice reminded me, "You don't know what this person is going through." I thought about those words throughout the weekend when. Oftentimes, we don't know the reasons behind a person's behavior and we can sometimes quickly think we know why a person has acted in a certain why. Sometimes we may not even recognize that we're viewing a situation or a person with a lens from our past.
I thought about this a lot over the weekend - how to gain perspective about situations and not jumping to conclusions that might be unfair. My friend's one liner helped to remind me to think about the entire context of a situation and to not take things personally before reacting in a way that I might regret later. I thought that I could read my friend’s mind and knew exactly what was happening, but there’s always room for error.
There are many ways that we all might need to sometimes adjust our thinking. Check out the fact sheet on Common Thinking Errors to learn more.
You could also gain more perspective about a situation by considering the following:
1. Asking questions – If you are confused about a situation or don’t understand a person’s behavior, ask them directly in a non-judgmental manner. You could also read this factsheet for tips on how to communicate effectively with your friends.
2. Writing – Sometimes our first response is emotional. If you find yourself feeling very emotional, stop and write down what you are thinking/feeling. This can help you make better decisions and not act in a way you may regret later.
3. Talking to a friend or another supportive person in your life – Sometimes sharing your thoughts with others may help you gain a bit of perspective about a situation. Make sure that you do not give a biased version of the story and try to be as fair as possible. You can also always read the stories submitted to ReachOut.com for some perspective or submit your own.
4. Challenge your own thinking – Try to see the situation in its entirety and avoid judgment or blame on others. If you are having trouble 'beating yourself up' over the issue, you might want to read how to challenge negative self-talk.
5. Participating in other activities – If you’re feeling that you have a strong reaction to a situation, then take a break by going for a walk or run or delving into a good book. You’ll feel much better if you take your focus off your problem, and focus on something else for a short period of time. Photo by jeffmcneill Do you "exercise perspective" on problems you or your friends are having by taking a sports break or talking it over? Is there anything that you do to help yourself figure out new ways of looking at things?
Christina Vo has a diverse background in international development and communications having worked for organizations such as UNDP, UNICEF and Solidariad and was also a Global Leadership Fellow at the World Economic Forum in Geneva. A unifying thread through her professional career has been her interest in the intersection of communications and social change. She has collaborated on a range of communication projects with organizations in the States and Vietnam. While in Vietnam, she worked on a national avian influenza behavior change communications campaign for UNICEF. Christina obtained a BS in public health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an MSc in social and public communications from the London School of Economics. She lives in San Francisco and spends as much time as possible writing.
