A friend of mine challenged my labeling mowing my lawn as an “outdoor sport.”

“Mowing the lawn is a chore,” they said.

Continuing to validate their case, they said outdoor sports were things like mountain biking, canoeing, snowboarding, fishing, and hunting.

“It’s all about perspective,” I countered.

Mowing my lawn is never a chore. It’s a time to let my mind relax by doing something I totally love and connecting with nature in a very small way.

It’s an incredible outdoor sport for me because it connects me mentally to the great outdoors just as if I was hiking. On a recent evening, while engaging in my deliberate outdoor recreation, I was treated to a magnificent Cache Valley sunset along with the sweet aroma of freshly cut Kentucky Bluegrass.

They were still not convinced.

“Go ask someone,” they continued, “who works at a sporting goods store to see if mowing the lawn is an outdoor sport.”

No need to ask. I know what their answer will be. Moreso, I need no validation from the store clerk or any other person.

LAW OF PERSPECTIVE

The Law of Perspective allows us to create a vision…

• Not limited by the view in front of us
• Not restricted by self-imposed tunnel vision
• Not relegated to our current knowledge level

Perspective, then, allows us to see what others can not see.

Some people, once shown, will also be able to see what we see. Some never will.

“There are three classes of people: those who see. Those who see when they are shown. Those who do not see.” — Leonardo da Vinci

How we choose to see things really matters.

Advertising guru Rory Sutherland, says, the circumstances of our lives may matter less than how we see them.

“The power of reframing things cannot be overstated,” Sutherland said while speaking at TEDxAthens in 2011. “What we have is exactly the same thing, the same activity, but one of them makes you feel great and the other one, with just a small change of posture, makes you feel terrible.”

Case in point: Is mowing the lawn a chore, or outdoor recreation?

“What you call [something],” Sutherland contends, “actually affects how you react to them, viscerally and morally.”

I chose to see the mundane chore of mowing the lawn as an enjoyable outdoor recreational activity. Thus, it was enjoyable versus being a drudgery.

Likewise, how we chose to see every area of our life will largely determine what impact that area will have on us.

Can we choose to see things better than they really are?

Sutherland thinks so.

“The circumstances of our lives,” he says, “may actually matter less to our happiness than the sense of control we feel over our lives.”

When we choose to see the good, positive, uplifting, joy, etc. along our journey through life, we are choosing to take control.

So what will your choice be?

• See what others choose to see?
• See what you choose to see?

Have a great Monday! Thanks for letting me share.

Les

p.s. Take 13+3 minutes today to enjoy Rory Sutherland’s 2011 TEDxAthens talk, Perspective is Everything.

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