Transformative Thursdays: Looking Past the Imperfections

March 21, 2019

1–2 minutes

woman-looking-in-the-mirror

A few weeks ago, my daughter brought home her school pictures. After asking to look at them, she reluctantly let me take a look. She immediately started pointing out all the things she didn’t like—the hair that was out of place, the hand that looked like she only had 3 fingers, the lips that were chapped, the eye that was slightly “squinty” and the clothes that were not the “perfect” outfit. I quickly assured her that she had taken a great picture showcasing her smile and she looked fine.

Just as my daughter rushed to identify each and every imperfection, we too, find ourselves focusing on what we perceive as not perfect. We are conditioned to magnify the negative and overlook the positive.

What if we began to condition ourselves to illuminate the positive and not dwell on the things that are imperfect? What if we focused on the positive qualities of others and not their weaknesses? What if we focused on the beautiful qualities within our world and not so much on the effects of evil-hearted people?

What if we looked past the imperfections?

Would we be more confident?

More at peace?

One response to “Transformative Thursdays: Looking Past the Imperfections”

Marta C. Youngblood

March 23, 2019 at 4:03 am

“What if we focused on the beautiful qualities within our world and not so much on the effects of evil-hearted people?” Yes, yes, YES! It matters how we condition ourselves to process and respond to the world around us. I am increasingly becoming vigilant about seeking out the beauty in the world rather than fixating on the negative. Now that doesn’t mean I ignore the issues that need attention that are not happy go lucky scenarios but I know I have to watch how much negativity or toxicity I expose myself to because it affects my energy and willingness to engage with people. For example, I used to watch a lot of criminal procedural shows like Law and Order and Criminal Minds and when Netflix became a “thing” I would of course binge watch those shows when I had free time. At some point, I noticed that I was growing increasingly irritable in social settings and started withdrawing from people. I was having trouble seeing the good in people and expected them to have malicious intent. I’m not blaming those tv shows entirely but I am a social behavioral scientist and I know that repeated exposure to messaging can affect and influence human behavior. So there is an evidentiary basis for exercising caution in the stuff we take into our mind, body and spirit because it can and will affect your behavior.

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