Who Really Knows

How Well Do You Know Yourself?

You're blessed when you stay on course, walking steadily on the road revealed by God.  You're blesssed when you follow his directions.

Psalm 119:1-2 (The Message)

There are so many self-help books, blogs, articles, internet sites, not to mention all the people in our lives, that all try to guide us this way and that.  Have you looked into any of these sources?  Chances are you probably have; so have I.  Have you found any of them truly helpful in your search into your inner-self?  If you are like me, you may have found nuggets here and there, but maybe nothing that really helps you make a fundamental change.  

Have you experienced any shifts in yourself, let's say, since your childhood or high school days?  Surely you have evolved, transformed, even morphed into someone different today than "back then".  I know I have.  I have learned alot about life.  Have there been experiences you were reticent to try?  Or has it been an easy transition for change?  Experiences have help switch my perception of the world around me.  Involvement in new endeavors has opened up a window into parts of life, and parts of me, I didn't know existed.  Time gives us the gift of maturity and a new frame of reference.  

Let's be honest -- change is hard sometimes though.  It can push us out of our comfort zone.  For me, I tend to resist shifts in ways that are in contrast to what I've become accustomed to.  Seemingly, the harder I resist, the more persistant the change pursues me.  

Recently, I've had to take a good look at myself and ask "who am I?".  As I have evolved over the years, I can safely say that there are replacements to some old "comfort zone" ideas I've had.  This current version of myself has grown, resisted, regressed, been altered, renewed, and cultivated.  And I'm not done.  

We each are unique in our characteristics, nature, personality, temperament, genetics, and constitution.  To me, one of the most important tid-bits I find to be helpful is to be true to myself.  What does that mean exactly?  It means to know myself, my limits, my views, my abilities, my boundaries, my likes and dislikes, and keep to what I know in my heart is the real me.  Being authentically me is the best gift I can give to others.  We each are made so specifically.  If we hide under the rock of not being like others, then our own light can't shine.

Take a few moments today to ask yourself questions that reveal your own truth.  What do I stand for?  What actions give me the most integrity?  What is so unique about me that others can't replicate it or use it in the way that I can?  How have I evolved into a better understanding of my beliefs -- which convictions speak to my character?  

When we embrace the person we are today, we can find ways to be happier.  Feel proud that you have reconstructed yourself over the years into an improved version of yourself.  And continue to keep yourself open to change.  Begin to really know yourself, starting today, and let others enjoy you for who you are.  When that happens, you will see that you are BEYOND BLESSED!

Perception Problem

Toasty,  Tasty, or Terrible

Perception is a funny thing, isn't it?  What's one person's trash is another person's treasure as they say.   Perception can taint how we feel about all kinds of things.  We develop how we view the world widely by experiences.  But those experiences are so personal that they cannot possible be true across the board.  

Case in point:  My son had three friends over.  They decided to use the toaster for some English muffins.  One friend thought toast sounded better.  His method of toasting was a variation on the usual.  He would put the bread in the slot, set the time once, remove the bread after the timer was up, flip the bread and put it back in the slot, then set the timer once more.  This was his tried-and-true method of "perfect" toast.  My toaster is a current version that toasts on both sides simultaneously.  Never have I needed to flip anything to ensure that both sides got the same, equal treatment.  In fact, my toaster even has a bagel setting which toasts only the inside, exposed part of the bagel.  That's a particular setting for one kind of method and it's not widely used.  I'd say we use the traditional setting much more often.  Yet, never have I used the flip method.  

The friend's toasting concept came from a family member that has always done it this way and passed down her knowledge to the subsequent generations.  This idea had been used with success for generations now.  His knowledge and view on this method had come from personal experience.  

The three friends didn't agree so much with the method nor the outcome.  When polled, three out of four agreed the toast was burnt.  One person cited he had to use his back teeth just to bite through the blackened crust.  Others looked at it and assumed it wouldn't taste good so they wouldn't even try it.  The culinary concoction ended up being shunned most likely out of the perception that the technique wasn't widely used and, therefore, the result would not be the conventional result -- it wouldn't taste good. I took a poll of those involved, me included.  Two of us found it appetizing while three did not.  Majority ruled, the toast was a thumbs down.  Now when I look at this picture (which is the actual toast in question), and I see a delicious looking, quite edible piece of toast.  I think I could have convinced everyone to try it and, I will even venture to guess, they may have liked it.  Persuasion can be a powerful thing.  The toast was eaten by it's maker, so I didn't get to try to convert the opposition.

So it goes with situations and people, too.  By pure notion, we can miss out on so much because we rule it out before we have evidence to backup our feelings or have anecdotal affirmation.  We can declare some toasty (tolerable), tasty (exemplary or satisfactory), or terrible (objectionable or undesirable).  Have you ever deemed something unworthy, not to your liking, invaluable or waste of your time?  Did you decide that because of your own experience, or did you let the influence of someone or something else help make the decision?  Did you ever use intuition because you had a sense about a person or situation?  Did you ever change your mind from your initial judgement?

Let me encourage you to not judge before you have involvement.  Don't miss out on a new person or event because of your past (in)experience.  You might have just stumbled upon something wonderful that will change your perception -- for the better!  Keep working toward the goal of being Beyond Blesssed!