Life Quotes ~ Week Two

Life Quotes...and what they mean to me.

"Obstacles are things a person sees when he takes his eyes off his goal.” E. Joseph Cossman

The way I see it, perception is 99% of reality (or is it 89%, 97.6%, or 99.9%?).  Okay, so I didn't look up the stat, but the point is the same: What we perceive (see, believe, interpret) is far more real than any concrete set of facts. Perhaps that's why different individuals experience -- and react to -- the same set of circumstances in completely different ways. We really do see the glass as half empty or half-full, the milk as sweet or spoiled, the outcome of drinking as destined to quench our thirst...or sure to give us heartburn. 

And rarely do our expectations disappoint.

Knowing this to be true, there are two ways to approach any given situation: to fix our eyes on what we want...imagine it, claim it, anticipate it...or to allow our attention to be diverted in response to every distraction, fear, or limitation we encounter.  Not only do these two different choices create very different outcomes, but they also affect the journey -- how much we enjoy or hate where we're going along the way.  If we could keep our eyes on the prize, so to speak (never forget what it is we really want), the challenges of getting there wouldn't be so overwhelming.  If we could dismiss those negative or fear-filled comments made by a neighbor, friend, or acquaintance (how one "man" chooses to expand or limit himself has nothing to do with the freedom of choice allotted another); if, better yet, we could learn to stop soliciting unwanted advice (no one else can possibly know the depth or your dreams, the uniqueness of your soul, or the priority any one thing might have in your overall life); and if, while we're at it, we could practice turning away from all of the negative  information, statistics, and examples laid out before us -- just waiting to demonstrate what we can't achieve (YES! I am actually talking about turning off that news broadcast, throwing out that magazine article, changing that depressing subject before it takes root) -- then a lot of those impossible dreams would begin to seem possible.

Might even become possible...

Of course, I understand that this is easier said than done, but why not try.  Why not carry around a note card reminding ourselves to keep our eyes on our goals, to switch our thinking from what we don't want to what we do want?  Why not constantly force ourselves to keep our thoughts on our dreams?

After all, if obstacles are what we see when we take our eyes off our goal, and if what we see or perceive issome really large percent of reality, then maybe we can influence our own reality simply by choosing where to fix our eyes.

????

And hey,  if we still fall a little short of our goals now and then, well at least we had a great time doing it!  But my guess is, we will probably succeed a whole heck of a lot more than we fail...

(And a heck-of-a-lot...that's gotta' be up there around at least 92.8%!)