Why "Perceptions's Black Swan"?

Who is this blog for? Why did I start the blog? What's in a name? All three of these questions can be answered separately, and all are interlinked. I can give simple answers or I can make the answers a bit complex with some hidden meaning. It's all in the way we see things, our individual viewpoints, and perception. That's the point, and that's life! I'll try answer the questions below.

Who Is This Blog For? 

I want my writing to be for everyone, and to make a difference to all types of people. People you see on buses, people running with their dogs, people stuck in a rut at work, little children skipping to school in the morning. Average everyday people who have hopes and dreams, and some who may feel life has left them behind. People like me and you.

And perhaps this blog is mostly for me. I want to find myself, know my identity, and to make a contribution in some way. I did not follow my childhood dreams and I don't want this pattern to be repeated in others (see post: http://perceptionsblackswan.blogspot.com/2011/12/about-me.html). Hopefully by putting some of my thoughts out in the open, I might help others to find happiness. And I enjoy writing! I hope to publish a book someday!

Why Did I Start The Blog? 

Changing Mindsets: Mine and Others 

You will notice I spend lots of time writing about changing mindsets towards people challenged in many ways. Perhaps this is because I believe that at various times, and in many ways both big and small, I have experienced some of life's hurts that most of us will bump up against: things like rejection, discrimination, bullying, condescending attitudes. Some of these experiences take place in my own mind, my mindsets. It feels like I have been wrapped up in bubble wrap that restricts my movements, stops me from speaking freely, makes me look ugly, hiding the real me. I heard a great sermon in church about "Fear" and a similar analogy was used to explain this concept. We put on trappings of fear sometimes based on experiences, and this cripples us seemingly in physical ways, like stopping us from speaking. Some of us then spend our lives unlearning these behaviours and throwing off the trappings of fear, but our outward appearance does not change (more about this in another post sometime) and we need to learn to behave in new ways. I've often wondered what's wrong with me, why I find it difficult to fit sometimes, and have not known "me".

Growth Through Learning 
My writing stems from my life experiences and my thoughts. I've attended management training courses and wondered why these principles are not taught to everyone. Training like facilitation skills, conflict management, emotional intelligence, general leadership training, and the list goes on. We can all benefit from training like this. Some people I worked with wondered why I was so enthusiastic attending training I might never use and that might not have been seen as part of my job description - I want to be the best person I can be, to be an informal leader, to experience growth towards wisdom. One can never learn enough! I believe constant growth is vital. To suspend fixed mindsets and be open always to new ways of seeing things and to be open to others' viewpoints. I believe some form of leadership training, and importantly a process of uncovering talents and knowing one's identity, should be part of school curriculums, and will positively influence our future leaders today in their formative years. All can benefit: from old to young, from leaders to housewives, the working and the unemployed, the able bodied and people with challenges, everyone.

Changing The World 
Another reason for starting this blog is that I believe we have the keys to peace and prosperity within our grasp, and I wanted to get this message out there. This message is being preached all around us every day. We know we must be friendly towards others, show caring, avoid discriminating, yet many of us do not actually take this to heart and actively practice this. When we see someone who is lonely, most of us will look the other way. When we see someone that's hungry, we push it to the back of our minds. The media is full of stories about the current famine in Africa, but this is something far away for us and we perhaps feel fleeting pity and then push it to the back of our minds. The world is so big, how do we make a difference? It feels like all I can do is add a drop to the ocean, but sometimes drops create ripples that spread wide, and if more join together the tide may turn and make a difference to the world. A good term for this phenomena is the "butterfly effect". 

What's In A Name?

Changing Perception 

Why the name "Perception's Black Swan"? The best way to cause a change in our lives is to change our mindsets. Our thinking influences our actions and our behaviour. If we change our thinking, we will change our actions, and cause a change in our world. If more and more of us do this, we will make a difference in the world. It starts with us, with our own perceptions. Secondly, we often have fixed ways we view the world, but often this might not be the entire truth. If we suspend our beliefs and our disbelief, and are open to some new ways of viewing things, we might change our perceptions.

Black Swan Event: All Using Our Talents
Thirdly, there is a phenomena called a "Black Swan Event", so named because sometimes unexpected happenings can cause a huge divergence from the past. People never used to know or concede that Black Swans existed, until the discovery of Black Swans in Australia proved this theory wrong. Thus the discovery of huge talents where these are least expected proves that we must never take anyone for granted. Talents exist in unexpected places. Not only in people that are outwardly beautiful. I believe the world, each of us, must make sure we provide the means for all the people to use their talents and to free their talents. Someone who has been ignored for all of their life might just change the world someday. (See my first post called "Black Swan Event In Judging Beauty And Potential": http://perceptionsblackswan.blogspot.com/2011/11/judging-beauty-and-potential.html)

In Summary

I have a story to tell! I am me! I can make a contribution to this world if I am allowed to, if I allow myself to! And so can you! We all can! My contribution may be small in influencing those around me, my family, and my friends, but I also hope my influence will be broader than that, that it will start reverberating outwards. Let's do our part by knowing ourselves and finding our purpose and where we fit, by using our talents, and by helping those around us. Let's change our worlds.