The Gift of Changed Perception:  A 4-Step Process
by Jennifer Ryan, M.Ed.

I put on my favorite red tank top this week knowing that it just might be the last time I wear it this season, since summer is soon coming to an end. 

Every time I wear red, I think of an article I read in Glamour magazine when I was a teenager old that said, "Redheads can wear the reddest of red!" Before that article, I'd heard from many others that redheads weren't supposed to wear red - it just wasn't our color.  I was supposed to wear greens and blues.

But since Glamour freed me of that perception, I've worn red freely and often!  Actually, it was ME that freed me from that perception, but it is curious how such simple words can change our judgements about even the silliest of things.  Our perception affects virtually every aspect of our lives.

Our perceptions are merely what we believe to be true about the world around us.  Furthermore, our reality largely occurs within the confines of our own heads, and when we want to change what we think, what we feel, or what we do, we have to change our perceptions associated with our world.

How do we change our perceptions?  Easy!  Here are four steps to get you moving in the right direction:

1.  Become Alert.  Become acutely aware of what you feel when someone does something in your presence, that triggers an intense negative emotion within you.  This is your perception.  Do you feel agitated?  Angry?  Upset?  Any other negative emotion?

2.  Observe Yourself.  Once you know how you feel, figure out what's been triggered to make you feel this way.  This isn't a time to point fingers and place blame on others for how you feel, or for the actions you've made.  This is the time to take an honest assessment of your own shortcomings, and use them as an opportunity for change.

3.  Discover Your Trigger.  What provoked you?  And here's a clue:  It has nothing to do with the external event that is currently taking place.  You might want to read that one again.  If you find yourself negatively triggered when something happens in your presence, it's not what the person did that provokes you.  It's YOU that provokes you, and chances are, this arousal comes from a similar experience from the past.

4.  Accept or Reject the Trigger.  When you figure out what in you has been provoked, change it.  You are now accessing the core of which you are, and at the core you have every freedom to know how you want to behave and feel.  You felt agitated, but now that you've become more alert, observed yourself, and discovered your trigger, do you want to change your reaction?  You decide if you want to continue feeling that negative emotion (anger, sadness, guilt), or change your perceptions and have a positive emotion instead.

You see, your perception is the drama you create in your head.  As the main character in the dramatic production of your life, you are the writer, director, and producer of your play.  But to get out of your head, and change your perception, you have to become the audience of your own play.

As the audience, instead of the actor, you are able to see your life being played out before you.  And the best part is, you can rewrite the lines, even as they're being dramatized on stage.  You have all the power!

So, what perception do you want to change?  Are you a redhead that wants to wear red, but were always told you couldn't?  Well, now you can!  And it's because you've decided to change your mind.

Once you realize freedom in your judgements, a certain four-letter phrase takes on a whole new meaning...  I Change My Mind!  And when you change your mind, you have the gift of changed perception.  May the gift (of changed perception), be with you!

By Jennifer Ryan, M.Ed.
Co-Founder of I Choose Change
Naked Truth Counselor and Coach

© 2007 I Choose Change