One of the best things about my house are all the windows. Huge windows that let in lots of light and give you a great view of my yard and neighborhood.
If you only looked out my front windows, though, you would think that I do a fabulous job of maintaining my grass and there are a lot of people living close to each other.
If you only looked out my back windows, you could tell immediately that I have dogs, don’t spend a lot of time working in my yard and think you were alone in the world.
The window you choose to look out of gives you a totally different view of my landscaping skills and neighborhood.
In the same way, we look at the world through windows that frame the way we see it. If you grew up poor, you might frame every choice with concern over cost. If you tend to be insecure, you might frame every encounter with concern over status.
Frames help us simplify our choices. But that simplification comes at a price – whether a missed opportunity we never considered or a miscommunication with someone operating under a different frame.
I’ve been pondering my own frame on the world – the one that values finding a bargain, assumes I’m not popular, cringes from cocktail parties and craves order. What am I missing because of the way I see the world? How determined am I to hold onto that worldview? How do I step back and take a broader view, whether to find a new niche in the marketplace, expand my personal growth options or better understand my spouse?
The past month has been a whirlwind of considering new possibilities, some of which I’m ready to take now that the dust is settling. What about you? What new possibilities could you open up if you just changed the way you look at the world?
Pick a new window, get a new view, open up a new option.
