This Is How To Shift Your Perspective to Create a Better Life

Life is full of ups and downs. Good things and bad things happen to everyone. What if some of the things you interpret as bad could actually be good things in disguise? What if the things that happen to you and the choices you make are all a matter of perspective? You see, the way you perceive the world, the people in it, its events, and even yourself all has to do with your perspective.

A Simple Analogy

You probably know the old analogy about the glass of water: are you a glass-half-full or a glass-half-empty kind of person? It’s simple, but it illustrates a point about your perspective. It asks you to look inside yourself to determine if you tend to view things with a positive outlook (“the glass is half full”) or with a negative one (“the glass is half empty”).

But you’re allowed to change the way you look at that glass of water. If your first reaction tells you the glass if half empty, a simple shift in language—and perspective—can tell you the glass is half full instead. The amount of water hasn’t changed. Only your perspective has.

Shift Your Perspective

You can apply that same principle of shifting your perspective to other situations, too. Is a rainy day a spoiled hike or a chance to catch up on some reading? Is your child asking you to play with them a pesky interruption or a chance to spend some quality time with your kid while you can?

What about bigger events, like not getting the job you wanted or not getting into your graduate school of choice? What about a missed business deal or getting passed over for a promotion? At first glance, all of these things seem bad. If you were angry or sad, no one would blame you. But you can apply that shift in perspective to these kinds of big, even life-altering events, too.

Instead of treating them as missed opportunities, ask yourself what other opportunities are you now free to explore? If you didn’t get the job you wanted or into your school of choice, what if there’s another job or school out there that would be an even better fit for you?

If a business deal or promotion fell through, you probably now find yourself with more time on your hands than you expected. Ask yourself what opportunities at work you’ll be able to pursue now. Maybe a better business deal is about to present itself that you would have had to turn down had the initial deal went through. Maybe without that promotion, you won’t have to work overtime so much and can spend the time with your family or pursuing that hobby or volunteer cause you’ve always been interested in but haven’t had time for.

See how a shift in perspective changes the way you look at those “bad things” that happened? The situations haven’t changed a bit. The only thing that’s changed is how you look at them. You took your initial reaction of anger or grief and replaced it with more positive thoughts.

You Control Your Attitude

Now negative emotions have their place, of course. If something really bad happens, it’s okay to take time to grieve or feel frustration. But you can’t wallow in those negative emotions because they will destroy you. You’ll start doubting yourself or even hating yourself. If you feel stuck in your initial negative emotions, remember that you are in control of your attitude and thoughts.

Take the necessary time to process through those negative emotions then shift to a positive attitude. It takes courage and hope, but you have the power to control your perspective. And when you control your perspective to bring about positive thoughts, you’re well on your way to a better, happier life.