I recently had another opportunity to remind myself yet again that perception is projection. For all of us.
I asked someone to stop tagging and messaging me with the volume of social media posts they share. Their notifications were overwhelming. I couldn’t get to the content I wanted to see thanks to the logjam from this one person. So, I asked that the notifications stop, explaining my challenge. I wished this person good luck on whatever goal they had set for the promotions. I honestly thought that would be that.
I received a scathing response. Calling me a bully, accusing me of taking my anger out on them. Basically telling me what a horrible person I was for being mean to them as a poor, sad victim. Then the person blocked me. Making sure there was no way to communicate further.
I understand that many people on the planet are in fear, with hair triggers that result in this kind of behavior. We all watch it on public social media streams. While such interactions continue to hurt me, I’ve learned to move on. Such is the thick skin of social media I suppose. Although as I write this I have to wonder if that thick skin is in any way a positive thing.
We all experience such behavior. And it’s all caused by projections, ours and others.
Perception is Projection
What you perceive in others is your own projection, based on your own unconscious expectations.
When those knee jerk responses of rage and anger, hurt feelings and worse come up because of something you read or hear – that’s your expectation responding. Only your expectation, it’s not someone else’s fault.
We all get to choose what we pay attention to, what we expect and how we respond. We all also read into the statements of others what we perceive to be true. That filtering of perception allows us to respond in the way we have defined our expectation of how to respond.
Anything that pisses us off is our stuff. Because our minds are simply following our attention and its expectations.
Projection Can Be a Gift
When perception is projections comes up, it’s a gift.
You’re being shown a limiting expectation. Now you have the opportunity to shift your attention and change that expectation. Or you can choose to continue to blame others. Probably not the best choice, but it’s one many of us make.
Here’s an option for another choice. And a way to take back control so that your perception is projection in a more positive way.
Stop taking it out on other people and focus back on your very own self. On the projections that are being served up to you for you to shift.
Stop, breathe and try the following:
- Sink into yourself. Stop the voices that have placed the blame on the other person. ONLY YOU are responsible for your expectations. Nothing outside of you. Stop giving away your power. Instead, sink into yourself and feel what’s happening. What expectations are coming to the surface? What is beneath those expectations? How deep can you go? How many expectations can you identify that are triggering limiting experience?
- Identify the expectation trigger. Now that you’ve recognized the expectations, feel your way to their triggers. What was said (read, implied or whatever) that caused the negative result? How does that relate to something in your past? Dig deep and find the source of that trigger. What expectations is telling you to be angry, hurt or whatever other negative response you’re feeling?
- Shift to a new expectation. 99% of the time you’ll find that the belief or trigger is from an event, or series of events, in your past. It’s usually a form of the basic expectation that you’re not good enough or less than others. Some piece of the crappy programming we all receive at one point in time or another.
- Instead of letting that programming take control, consciously focus your attention on a positive expectation or belief. Something that counters whatever negative belief you’ve identified. Step into what you want to have as the positive truth in your life. Focus on that.
- Create a scenario where you are in your personal power. Pay full attention to that scenario for a while. Then, consciously apply that scenario to the triggering situation you just experienced. Change that trigger with your own attention.
Perception is projection happens because your expectations create your experience. When you change your expectations, you change your experience.
Everything you feel, see, hear, smell, taste and experience is your very own reality of experience. Everything you perceive is a result of your own projection into that reality.
Now that you know why projection is perception, you can focus on yourself and stop blaming the world for your triggers. This is your chance to take control of every single situation.
We all have triggers from past pains that drove limiting expectations. We all have them, and we all have the opportunity to change our expectations and our experiences. If we stop blaming everyone else for our experience.
