Perception…. IS Reality….

At least that’s how I see it.

Fantasy, illusion, reality… what’s more important? Which is more real?

Empirical evidence, objective truths, subjective observations… is one substantially ‘better’, more real, or possibly more ‘true’ than another?

I think many folks would say, almost out of reflex that objective reality is the ‘real deal’, and maybe it is, or, maybe it really is all much more contextual in nature than factual.

This is one of the little thoughts that have been rolling around in my ‘bb brain’ for a while now. This question of reality, what is real, what exactly is fantasy or illusion?

I’ve believed, for some time that “Perception is reality” that what we perceive as real, is, in fact real, for us, at that moment. That it is (or might be) an illusion is secondary, something we only come to understand, later, after the fact.

This applies in the programming and system development world and can be seen at work there every day. If a user perceives an application to be difficult to use, it is, in fact, difficult to use, for them. Forget that there are 10 other folks who love the look, the feel, the reports, for that user who perceives it to be bad, it is.

Even worse, if that user happens to be in charge of the 10 who like it, trust me; their reality will become altered until they too see it as flawed.

I’ve thought about this at times as I’m riding the motorcycle too. At times, the bike I currently have feels less ‘fast’ than my previous bike. I know that in fact it’s far faster, but, other than in straight line acceleration it just doesn’t feel that way, to me, as the rider. It may have to do with this bike having a much more relaxed feel, that at the same speeds in the same corners, it just doesn't feel as 'on edge'... it could be something else... I only know that's how it 'feels'.

You’d think that with something as measurable as speed, or even acceleration we’d have a pretty good grip on the ‘real’ answer, but we don’t.

Think about it, how ‘fast’ does 600 miles per hour feel when you’re in an airplane? Does it feel faster, or slower than say 80 miles an hour in your car? How many times have you been in a line, where you felt that you’d been waiting for ‘hours’, only to discover it had only been a few, maybe less than five, or ten, minutes. Have you ever noticed that the later you’re running, the slower everything around you ‘feels’? That your perception of time is altered by your subconscious as you attempt to get where you’re going?

Our perceptions, of ourselves, our friends, loved ones, business associates and the world around us in general, in fact, creates our reality. Or at least I believe it does.

If you perceive that you’re getting a ‘raw deal’… at work, for example, no amount of supposed ‘rational discussion’ with others who are not in exactly your specific situation is going to convince you otherwise. Have you ever noticed though, that if you alter your perception of the situation, you’ll actually begin to ‘feel’ differently about it? If you, for instance, begin to believe that you’re not alone, that the company treats everyone poorly, then you begin to feel less persecuted, more focused in your efforts to find another job that’s more in line with how you think folks should be treated?

I’ve been thinking about this “Perception is reality” concept of mine for a very long time. At least 10 years or more, and in all of that time I've become more convinced, everyday, that it’s completely true.

This brings a very interesting conundrum to light, do I believe it, because I perceive it, or, have I come to believe it simply because it is the way things are?

If our reality is determined by our perceptions, to me, that means our degree of happiness is 100% under our control. That if we perceive ourselves to be happy, we will be, in fact, happy… the converse is also true, we can build a misery for ourselves far beyond any of even biblical proportions.

So why is it then, that we’re not all just walking around deliriously happy?

I think that society, our culture, is at least partly to blame. We’re taught from a very young age that we should be able to ‘live the American dream’… unfortunately, the exact details of that dream are not the same for everyone. Some of us have far higher expectations of what the dream actually is, and when we reach for it, and find it to be just out of reach, we think we’ve failed, or been lied to, or any of 1,000 other self defeating thoughts on ‘why’ we didn’t get the dream as promised.

Newspapers, Magazines, Television, Radio and the movies all present us with various versions of what the dream entails. Advertising in these mediums also attempts to formulate in our beliefs what it means to “have the dream”. A new car, bigger house, better job… longer vacations, a stunning, sexy partner… perfect hair, teeth, body… all within reach, if, you’re living the dream…

I say, if you look there for the dream, unless you are one of about 1% of the population, you’re very likely to be ‘perceiving’ that you’ve been cut off from the dream.

Most of us though, if we truly look around, will see that we already have the dream. It’s here, right now, and we’re living it. It’s our perception, and our perception of what we don’t have, that feeds that discontent.

If I spend just one day focused on the things I’d like to have, but don’t have, I’ll be significantly less happy as a result. There is no end to my ‘wish list’… it simply grows (or shrinks) with my current income level. If I’m broke, I’m perfectly happy just paying the bills and having food to eat… on the other hand, when I’m doing well and the income is flowing in regularly, I find myself ‘wishing’ once again.

I could be wishing for a new tractor, a better welder, a new Plasma cutter, a big screen TV, a vacation home in the mountains, a new bike, a bigger garage, more relaxation time… whatever… all things that aren’t even on the list, when money is tight.

Will these “things” really change my level of happiness? No, they won’t… sure, I’d enjoy them, but as sure as I’m typing this, if money got tight I’d sell all of it without a second thought.

So, what do you think? Is your perception of reality, in fact, your reality? I’m working on some more posts on this, as I believe it explains a lot in the way of our (well mine anyway) behavior, and, our over all satisfaction with our lives.

I’d really like to hear what you’re thinking about this!

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