Reality is based on perspective.

 

The concept of reality is an interpretation of the ever-shifting moment of contact you have with the perception of how your life is unfolding. It is the intersecting awareness between your inner and outer worlds. Internally, your reality includes qualities such as your thoughts, emotions, memories, impulses, and needs. Externally, your reality involves what you see, hear, touch, taste, and smell. Even though all of these things are continuously happening in some way or another, where you direct your focus is how these qualities produce meaning.

 

Thoughts that are generated by your mind are constantly surveying your inner and outer environments for signs of threat. Even when danger is not actually present, the mind can create thoughts to generate that fear-based perspective anyway. Two places where threat doesn’t actually exist are in the past or in the future. The mind is built to survey these places in the pursuit of what to focus on and how to address bad things that have already happened or try to prevent bad things from happening in the future. Thoughts like, “If only that hadn’t happened…” or “I’ll be happy when…” are examples of these abilities.

 

We can get stuck in a creation of reality of what has already happened or what might happen in the future. We can mistakenly define ourselves by the story that has already been written and exists only in time gone by, and, in doing so, build lives around what doesn’t exist anymore. When we focus on what has already occurred, we mistakenly assume that is accurate information for predicting the future, and then make assumptions for how negatively the future will be. But that doesn’t have to be the story you tell.

 

You can direct your journey.

 

What if you were able to harness your perception of reality in your favor? What if you intentionally directed your focus to see positive elements of your past? If most of your current behavior is positively slanted, then why not assume your future behavior will be too? Assume that you’ll continue to figure things out.

 

Ultimately, you want to practice letting your focus rest as close as possible to the moment of awareness of now. Not three hours ago, not in a week from now, but right now. Is there any real danger in this moment right now? In this unfolding moment right now – not your mind’s story based in the past or future – is there really any threat, or are you creating that perception?

 

What you shine your light of attention on drives the meaning behind your reality. Practice focusing on what drives a positive self-perception in the present and notice that, since you’ve made it to this moment right now, then whatever comes your way in the future will be something that you can also handle. Even if it was messy in the past, you have always been able to forge some kind of path. Try to find some confidence in that awareness.

 

You are much more in control of your reality than you probably realize.