Its All About Perception

When Guru Dronacharya was training archery skills to Pandavas and Kauravas , he tied a bird to a tree and asked them all what they were seeing. Each one of them answered what they saw but didn't get to shoot until Arjuna's answer left Guru Drona impressed "Bird's Eye". I am sure he too saw the tree and the sky and everything else, but he was focused. He knew what had to be seen.

What differentiates us from others is what we see, how we perceive things & how we act upon it. The key elements to winning is Stay Focused, Think Positively, & Act Accordingly

Let me share few examples that will help you understand this better

A long time ago there was a king who wanted to know his future. He called upon the top astrologers of his kingdom and asked him to enlighten the king. The astrologer went through all his calculations and looked worried. He did his ciphering again but he didn't seem satisfied with his findings. At last when the king couldn't keep the impatience to himself, he asked the astrologer to share his findings. The astrologer, worriedly, uttered with whatever courage he could sum up - "My Lord, its a bad new. All your family members and friends and relatives will die in front of you" The king got furious and ordered to behead the astrologer. He then summoned every possible astrologer from his kingdom, and all ended up with the same fate. Soon astrologers started fleeing the kingdom.

Months passed. One day, a sage walked into the king's court and offered to look into his future. Everybody seem to be petrified hearing the sage, finally the king broke the silence by warning the sage "I hope you know what has happened to the people in the past". The sage paced towards the king's throne telling him that he has already looked into his future. The sage continued, "Its a very good news my lord, you have a very long life. You will live for hundred years. And that's why others present here will die before you, because their lives are not as long as yours. You are the luckiest one amongst us". The king was very impressed, he rewarded the sage handsomely and also offered him to join his court as an advisor.

What we learn here is : Analyze the situation properly before jumping into a conclusion and acting upon it. Think through before you speak. If you are a positive person, you see good all around.

A similar story, which I love narrating everytime I find an opportunity :) and I am sure many have already heard it. A shoe making company wanted to grow their business. One of the growth strategies include widening territories, hence they sent their marketing guy to do a research in a neighboring town. After few days he came back, when asked he said, "The trip was a complete waste of time and money. Not even a single person wear shoes". Another competing firm had sent their marketing guy to the same town, asking him to do the same research. He reverted stating, "We have an amazing opportunity. Not even a single person wear shoes".

Both saw the same thing, both ended their research with the same statement, but both were two worlds apart. Until we know the entire story, we dont know who was right and who was wrong, but what matters to us is perception. Its for sure that one of those organizations either lost their market, or lost their investments.

If your research is not foolproof; if you do not study the market, the competition & the consumer behavior properly then you will not be able to help your organization grow

I would like to end this article with the widely know example - The Glass Half Filled.

What do you see? Is this glass half filled, or is the glass half empty. If you see the glass half filled then are you a pessimist ? What if I say I have an opportunity to fill the glass with more water. Will you call me an opportunist or a visionary or will you still call me pessimist. Like I said - Its All About Perception.