073 | Transcending Short Sightedness
August 2, 2021
Minute of Transparency: Take a Frickin' Vacation!
Today's Topic: Transcending Short Sightedness
In this episode:
Getting stuck in the here and now
Expand your vision / Open your mind
Getting started today
// 1. GETTING STUCK IN THE HERE AND NOW
Simply put - Short Sightedness is getting stuck in the here and now.
But let's make it official with some definitions:
Dictionary.com defines being short sighted as:
Unable to see far, nearsighted or myopic
Lacking in foresight
Now the first three words sounds a lot like words we use for the quality of our vision - so we'll skip those for now.
But the second one sounds interesting: "Lacking in foresight"
So let's see what "foresight" means...
Care or provision for the future; provident care; prudence
the act or power of foreseeing; prevision
an act of looking forward
knowledge or insight gained by or as by looking forward; a view of the future
Surveying
Now we're getting somewhere...
So being short sighted is the opposite - or the inability to have foresight:
Not looking into the future
Not being prudent
Choosing not to gain knowledge by looking into the future
Not "surveying" the world around us and future possibilities
And this is the definition I want to use for this episode:
“Being hyper focused on the here and now without looking around for knowledge on the subject.”
I believe this is something we all fall prey to from time to time:
Some are mostly short sighted
Some are rarely short sighted
And there is everything in between
But the important thing to understand is that being short sighted happens to the best of us
So let's get specific.
In the Minute of Transparency I shared my short sightedness on taking vacations. And there are thousands of other scenarios where we can act like this. Think and behave in ways that are short sighted vs. us displaying foresight.
So let's walk through a few areas in our lives where short sightedness can catch us off guard:
Our Personalities:
Have you ever taken a personality inventory like Strengths Finder, Insights, Myers-Briggs or the Enneagram?
If so, what are the first two things you do?
First thing you do is think to yourself, "Oh my word! How in the heck can a survey with so few questions figure me out so perfectly? It's like they climbed inside my head and extracted all the data. I mean - that's me in a nutshell."
Second thing you do is look around at people with other personality types and think to yourself, "Oh...that's why they are the way they are..." And you tend to view them as missing something, or being flawed in some way. We immediately view other peoples personalities as less than ours. If only they had a little bit more of my personality - I think they would be so much happier!
But this is a perfect example of being short sighted - right?
We fall into this all the time - rating and reviewing other people based on who we are and how we act
The closer people are to our personality - the more accepting we are of them
The farther away a person is from our personality - the harder it is to be accepting of them
Have you heard people say things like this?
He's just out there. We have nothing in common...
She's so extroverted. I can only be around her once and a while...
He's too quiet. I just can't be alone with him for long...
All statements and decisions we make about other people because they are different than us
Our World View:
Another area where we can be short sighted is in the way we view the world:
One example of this is thinking that everyone experiences the world just like you
Another example is thinking that everyone was raised the same way
Yet another is thinking that everyone has the same opportunities as we do
The truth of the matter is people's upbringings are vastly different
The opportunities people have are vastly different
And because of this - people experience the world in vastly different ways
And the more we understand this - the less short sighted we will be when interacting with those around us
Our Location:
Believe it or not - where we live can make us VERY short sighted
If you live in the south you might take life a little slower than other people
If you live in a big city you might see lots of people as a requirement for happiness
If you live in rural America you might see lots of people as a problem
If you live in Jamaica you might view life as "No Problem"
If you live in Hawaii you might view life from the "Aloha" point of view
None are bad, or wrong - just different
If you get too focused on your location and culture - you can become short sighted
Our beliefs:
Very similar to our world view - but pulled beliefs out so we can talk about two very polarizing things: Politics & Religion
Politics:
I probably don't need to say much about this at all
After the 2020 presidential election and the way it polarized the country
It is obvious that politics can divide a nation
And we need to understand that politics is an area where we can get very short sighted
We can close our minds down to a very small set of political beliefs and choose not to listen, not to engage, and not to find common ground with people who believe something different than us
And in the worst case scenario - this short sightedness can lead to extremist thinking and behaving
Religion:
Very similar in nature to politics is a person's religious beliefs
In fact - it isn't surprising that our political parties are loosely based on the religious beliefs held by people in that party
Beliefs on things like abortion, the makeup of the family, capital punishment, the right to bear arms, etc.
But religion is even bigger than politics
Here are a few levels of religious polarization that you might recognize:
Numerous Protestant denominations - each with a unique version of the truth
Protestant vs. Catholic: Both considered Christian - but with distinct differences
Christianity vs. Judaism vs. Islam: All based on the same God - but with very different belief structures after that
All world religions: Think about the unique belief differences between Christianity, Taoism, Buddhism, Greek Mythology, Polynesian religious beliefs based on animism, etc.
And then there is an obvious polarization between those who believe in a God and those who don't
With there being so many versions of religious thought - the potential to become short sighted is definitely there
Growing up inside one of these religious belief structures can subconsciously create short sightedness in you
It's how you view the world, and it can become the way you assume everyone should view the world
But that's exactly where the problems begin...
// 2. EXPAND YOUR VISION / OPEN YOUR MIND
So now that we know what short sightedness is, and where it comes from - what do we do about it?
Simply put - we start by expanding our vision. Moving from short sightedness to having foresight.
And what did we say foresight looked like?
Care or provision for the future; provident care; prudence
The act or power of foreseeing; prevision
An act of looking forward
Knowledge or insight gained by or as by looking forward; a view of the future
Surveying
This is how we "expand our vision" and move away from being short sighted.
So let's look at three important steps in this process:
Look up:
The first thing that comes to mind for me when I think about being short sighted is the image of an Ostrich with its head stuck in a hole in the ground
Have you ever seen this? It's hilarious to see this huge bird standing there with no head - because it's down in a hole
Now before I leave this hanging out there I should probably explain...
According to sciencefocus.com Ostriches do this because they bury their eggs in the sand - and they stick their heads down there to turn the eggs in order to keep them evenly heated
But to me this is the perfect imagery needed to explain short sightedness
When we fall into being short sighted it's as if we have our heads in a hold in the ground
All we can see is the hole
So the idea of "looking up" fits perfectly
We need to pull our heads out of the hole - and look up
Look around:
Foresight talks a lot about looking forward, looking to the future
But let me suggest that "looking around" might be a better phrase for us to use
Not just to the future - but getting a full 360 view
Past: Because the past is our teacher. It should remind us areas where we failed, and areas where we were successful
Present: Because it is important to be aware of your surroundings and what is going on in the world
Future: Because looking ahead at your preferred outcome will help you develop a path in the right direction
Develop an active, open mind:
Simply put - this is learning to think critically
Instead of getting hyper-focused on the things right in front of you (what we're referring to as being short sighted)
Be willing to look around, listen, and learn from the world around you
So I used the two words "active" and "open" for a reason:
Active: Because this doesn't come naturally - at times you have to check yourself, and force yourself out of your comfort zone in order to see the world from another person's perspective
Open: Because once you have actively chosen to see the world from that perspective - you need to be open to two things:
The possibility that you might be wrong:
This is the hardest part! Especially when our short sightedness has dug in and it is something we've believed for a really long time
But I can't tell you how dangerous this is - to throw something out just because you've always believed something different, or you've always done something the same way
I've fallen for this so many times looking back
But more recently - maybe as part of the maturation process - I've walked through the active, open mind process more and more often
Things I used to be so dogmatic about have softened, and at times completely changed
All because I was active, and open to the possibility that I may have been short sighted in that area
A willingness to "lovingly" agree to disagree:
Of course there will be times when you are right
And the other person may be sincerely wrong
But this is where you have the choice to Transcend Human, or to polarize the situation even more
My recommendation is to choose the "lovingly agree to disagree" route
In any situation:
If you're right and they are wrong
Or if your opinions are just different and there is no right or wrong
What would it look like in either scenario for you to "lovingly" agree to disagree
To allow your friendship to continue - your relationship to remain in tact regardless if you disagree on things?
// 3. GETTING STARTED TODAY
So we just fleshed out what it might look like to change the way we think, and behave when we find ourselves stuck in the short sightedness trap.
But that is a long term fix. We can start working on it today - but it isn't an easy button. It doesn't just change immediately in our lives.
In my life, I can see short sightedness traps on a weekly basis - sometimes a daily basis!
So it isn't a quick fix - it takes methodical day-by-day decisions to make progress away from our short sightedness.
But here's some good news...
There are some things you can do to jump start this process - to give it a kick in the pants - and move from 0-60 in a shorter period of time:
Get out of your comfort zone:
Take that open mind of yours and do something different
Meet new people - people who aren't like you
Eat in new restaurants - try new foods
Watch a movie or TV show you wouldn't typically watch
Try listening to a genre of music that is not in your current playlist
Basically - see the world from a fresh perspective
Really see the world:
Both locally and globally
See a new part of the world near you
Not just another clean suburb - see the parts of your city or state where real people live
And the same goes for the world
Don't just fly to a tropical Island and stay at the resort the entire time
Explore and see how people in other countries live
Seeing a 3rd world country is one of the fastest ways to force your head out of that short sighted hole in the ground
Watch a documentary:
There's nothing that will blow some of your short sightedness than a good, honest documentary
It can't be a documentary where the producer/director is just trying to push an agenda
But honest, investigative documentaries are so helpful
Being short sighted is often a byproduct of a lack of knowledge
And nothing pushes back at your short sightedness like a fully researched, factual explanation
I mean you have to be pretty closed minded to be presented with all that information and data and just say, "I'm not going to believe it because I just choose not to."
Serve others:
If we can get out of your comfort zone
And if we can really see and understand the world around us
What would it look like for us to start serving the people we find there?
Serving in the following ways:
Treating everyone as an equal
Being tolerant of others
Lovingly agreeing to disagree
Meeting the needs of people put in our paths
Putting others needs before ours
Again - not easy - especially in this country where we are brainwashed to believe that it is all about us, our happiness and our comfort
Let’s Land the Plane:
Thanks for joining us this morning.
This week ask yourself the following questions:
What are some areas where you might be getting stuck in the here and now?
Are there places where your head is stuck in a hole in the sand?
What would it look like to look up, look around and become a little more open minded in these areas?
And finally, are there some tangible things you can do this week to:
Step pout of your comfort zone?
See the real world?
Learn a bit more about a subject you don't understand?
And serve someone without thinking about your needs?
That about does it!
Have a great week, look up, look around, keep an open mind and as always keep Transcending Human!