Today podcast title is, “Perspective is Everything.” Now let’s break down what the word perspective means. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines perspective as a mental view or prospect (to anticipate). It also defines it as the capacity to view things in their true relation or relative importance.

With regard to this podcast, I want to focus on the first definition which defines perspective as a mental view or prospect. Perspective is something unique to each individual, it is our individual mental view or mindset. Therefore, how we see the world is purely based on our thoughts and expectations. We see the world as good or bad based on what we anticipate happening. If you perceive the world as being a place where you can have what you want and your dreams can come true then that will happen for you. But on the flip side, if you are a negative person and believe that things will never happen for you then that is how your life will be. You will constantly have problems and issues. Author and Motivational speaker, Wayne W. Dyer was quoted as saying, “Loving people live in a loving world. Hostile people live in a hostile world. Same world.” Have you ever been around a negative person? I mean a real negative person that all they do is complain and find something wrong with everything. Those people are the ones that live under a raining cloud 24/7. Even their energy is off. No one wants to be around them because no one can bear the constant complaining. If you take them to your favorite restaurant they find a problem with the food they ordered or the decor is grim or the tables are cleaned to their standard. They make you questions a place that you once loved. They find a problem with everything. If you are smiling they gotta question what you are happy about? Again, Dyer said, Loving people live in a loving world. Hostile people live in a hostile world. Let me add to that negative people live in a problem filled world. But the truth is we all live in the same world.

Our thoughts are what shape our perspective. That is why we have to take inventory of our thoughts and pay attention to messages that are running through our minds. We have to make sure what we are thinking lines up with what we want to see happen for us. Our thoughts determine our mood, how we present ourselves, our actions and so many other things. There are so many people living fake lives and portraying false perceptions of their reality because they have convinced themselves that their fake social media life is better than their real lives. There are people going into massive debt taking trips, buying clothes, shoes, houses, and cars that they cannot afford because they want to give the impression that they are doing better than they really are. People are competing with other people that aren’t even watching. In today’s society, everyone wants to be famous. People are measuring their worth based on how many followers, views, and likes that they get. But the truth is if you are not happy where you are, there is nothing you can post, share, or buy that will change that. Even if the million followers come you will still find a reason not to be happy.

We must learn to be happy with our lives as it is today. That doesn’t mean we don’t aim for more or don’t try to be better. It just means we have to learn to be grateful and thankful for the good things that is happening for us. We also can’t get so caught up in thinking that other people's lives are better than ours that we put unwarranted stress on ourselves and our relationships trying to compete with people that probably not even paying attention. Why compete with people when you are not even getting paid. If I am going to put in all that work to compete with someone I need to get paid for it. We go online or wherever [you] get [your] information and we see celebrities, our family members and friends doing all of these seemingly amazing and cool things and we think our lives are so mundane and boring. So we start trying to think of things we can post that will get people’s attention. We try to figure out how we can get more likes. I sound like I know about this, right? I know I do because I have been there! And I have to check myself on a regular and remind myself of the reasons why I use social media. My goal is to motivate, encourage, and inspire people to go for their goals. I am also on there to keep in contact with people and have fun. Scientist and Philanthropist, Sir John Lubbock said, “What we see depends mainly on what we look for.” So, this is my disclaimer to all of the nosy people out there, if you want to go on my page and see things that get upset because of what you found, its because you went looking for it.

Our perspective means everything, it is everything. We have to say positive things to ourselves to cancel and drown out negative thoughts. That’s why I love daily affirmations. Affirmations help us keep our perspectives in line with what we want to happen. When we focus our minds and attention on the things that we want — we will see opportunities during times when others see opposition. I am so grateful for Lewis Howard Latimer. You might be thinking, who on earth is that? Well, of course, I am going to tell you. Latimer was an African American inventor that contributed to the invention of the light bulb and the telephone. His invention is the reason light bulbs can last for as long as they do. Here was a guy that saw a problem and instead of letting the problem control his actions he saw an opportunity to literally make the [world] a better place. I’m sure everyone has at least one light bulb in their house and we have Lewis Howard Latimer to thank for that. So the next time you looking for the perfect light to take your selfie on your cellphone give a quick shoutout to Latimer. When we say daily affirmations we remind ourselves and also reaffirm to the universe the things that we desire. Every living thing has to be feed. We have to feed our bodies, our mind, even nature needs food. The same is goes for our dreams. We have to feed our dreams daily. Affirmations is a perfect way to do just that.

If you are having a down moment and not feeling inspired. Take a moment to think about what you have been thinking about... let me say that again.... when you are having a hard time or you are feeling depressed and down take a moment to think about what you are thinking about. Author, Dan Brown says, “Sometimes a change of perspective is all it takes to see the light.” I find myself doing that a lot now. It really helps me when I start feeling anxious or start having negative thoughts. My therapist introduced this method to me. She had me put a rubber band around my wrist and told me not to take it off. Anytime a bad or negative thought came to mind I had to snap the rubber band. I must be honest, that first day I was snapping that rubber band constantly. I slept in it, showered in it until it broke. That experiment opened my eyes to just how horrible my thoughts were. I had to come to grips with the fact that I had some work to do and that work started with which thoughts I wanted to feed and nurture. That exercise showed me that in order for me to be a better person for me and the people that I love, I need to change my perspective by first changing the way I was thinking. I had to remind myself of my goals and dreams. My challenge to you is to check your thoughts. Make sure your thoughts line up with what you want. Make sure we are not giving more power to our past and negativity.

The only thing negative thinking does for us is give us a negative perspective on life and when we think that way we miss precious opportunities because we aren’t even looking for them. We run away good people because we think everybody is trying to take advantage us or trying to take something from us. We walk around with this rainy cloud over our heads 24/7 because we allow bad thoughts to control our lives. The only one that can control that is you! We are the only ones that can control our thoughts. That has nothing to do with society or the systems that were designed for some people to win and some people to lose. The only people responsible for our thoughts is us. Period! Poet and Playwriter, Oscar Wilde was quoted as saying, “The optimist sees the donut, the pessimist sees the hole.” Let me be clear, this is not a one time process. Controlling our thoughts is an ongoing process. It’s something we have to do every day of our lives. Even when you are on vacation. Even when it's your birthday. We must at all times keep our thoughts in check.

We have to treat our thoughts, perspective, and especially our time like we would a million dollars. You wouldn’t give your money to just anyone. Or at least I hope you wouldn’t. You wouldn’t give that money to someone that would waste it. So why would you give your mental capital to people that don’t appreciate it and waste it? That’s why I have a love/hate relationship with social media. It can be very rewarding and educational if you are following the right people. But if you are following the wrong people it can be a huge waste of time and life. I couldn’t find the originator of this quote but it says, “Don’t waste your words on people that deserve your silence.”