Put Things in Perspective

We often get so immersed in what is happening to us at this moment, and it seems so big and important…we lose sight of how insignificant most moments are in the long run. Decisions and events are important, but often not as critical as we think they are at that time (and sometimes the decisions we don’t think are critical end up being so).

Will it matter in 10 years? Will you even remember this thing that has you so upset right now?

When I was a teenager, often I would get upset about normal teenage issues (how unfair life was, not getting something I wanted, etc.). My mother would say “will this really matter to you in 10 years time?” and by doing this, she was able to help me gain perspective on the issue. Very few things really will matter in 10 years time – think about whatever has gotten you upset most recently, and ask yourself if you will even remember the event or issue in 10 years time. I’m guessing that most of the time the answer will be “no.” Think back 10 years – what was bothering you then? Do you even remember? And if you do remember, was it really as earth shattering as you thought at the time?

And if, after thinking it through, you think it will still be important, then come up with an action plan to deal with the situation.

Are babies dying?

My husband used to manage an area in the information systems department of a company, and sometimes things would go wrong or problems would occur. Sometimes these would be serious problems that would cost time and money to the company. But, in the end, while they needed to be corrected and kept from happening in the future, the problems weren’t those that affected people’s lives directly. So my husband used to remind people that “babies aren’t dying as a result” which was his way of getting people to get some perspective on the problem.