Perspective refers to our attitude or point of view toward a topic or object.
It is our perception of things in the context of the whole, as well as our assessment of the significance of one item in relation to other things.
It is true, as Henry David Thoreau once remarked, that the question is not what you look at, but what you perceive.
Everything that occurs in your life is a result of your perception of what is taking place. When something is disastrous to one individual, it is a challenge and a chance for development for another.
Put another way, when one has a good, healthy self-concept, putting things into perspective becomes an exercise in critical thinking and reasoning rather than an emotionally charged event.
When confronted with tough circumstances, we cannot help but respond emotionally. Yet, even when unable to alter the situation, we have the choice of how we allow it to impact us.
Attitude, which is a component of perspective, may be defined as a style of thinking about or seeing things. As individuals, we have the power to choose how we think and how we behave.
William James, the eminent psychologist, once stated:
A person's life may be changed simply by changing his or her attitude of mind, according to the greatest discovery of my generation.
Our attitude has a significant impact on how we see and interpret events in our life. As we are all aware, attitudes may be either good or negative, as we have seen in the past.
By choosing to see our experiences-whether happy, negative, or indifferent-from a positive perspective, we will most likely perceive them as chances for personal development and progress.
But if we allow ourselves to get mired in negativity when things don't go our way, we will lose out on chances for development and will place ourselves in a position to be faced with similar circumstances in the future until we learn how to cope with them.
Without a shadow of a doubt, nothing in life happens easily and without incident. Sometimes the difficulties we encounter may push us to the edge of our comfort zones, causing us to wonder why this is happening and how it could have been prevented.
It is likely that we would prefer not to have to cope with the difficulties that are put in our way at such times. Because it is at these times that we are forced to stop and consider our options for dealing with the issue at hand.
The fact that we are here to learn, grow, and work hard in order to achieve our full potential means that we cannot help but have a positive and progressive view.
Life is ultimately a subjective experience, and it is up to each of us to determine how we want to see and experience it in our own unique way.