WEEK EIGHTEEN:
WHAT DO YOU SEE?
“It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see."
Henry David Thoreau
Our default setting as human beings is to observe and not to perceive. The two words are often used interchangeably, but they do not necessarily mean the same thing. Observation entails gathering the facts, but perception searches deeper and looks for the truth.
Two people may observe the same thing, but they can perceive it differently. For example, you may look at a jagged wooden block and see a jagged wooden block, but to a carpenter, it can be a potential work of art. We are constantly bombarded with facts by the media, but it is up to us to see them as stumbling blocks or stepping stones.
Every entrepreneurial venture is founded on the principle of providing a solution to a problem and getting paid for it. Where others saw a problem, entrepreneurs saw a solution and an opportunity.
Look in the mirror and tell me what you see. Is it a work of art waiting to be freed by chiseling out the rough edges, or just a regular 'block'?