Its Not what you look at that matters, but what you see.

Everything you see or hear or experience in any way at all is specific to you. You create a
universe by perceiving it, so everything in the universe you perceive is specific to you.
Douglas Adams

Perception forms the basis for our reality. It is the process by which we receive, organize
and interpret stimuli. Our perception is in turn built from our experiences. Every event that
occurs in our lives, every person we meet, everything we do leaves an indelible impression
on the way we perceive the world around us and how we form our reality. We learn values,
form opinions and beliefs and there is an additive effect as our subsequent actions and the
learnings from those are based on our prior perceptual set*.

There are many dangers of perception including prejudices, stereotypes and projection,
amongst others. However, they cannot be avoided, as they are intrinsic to human nature.
What we can do is recognize these mental blocks and become conscious of their effect on
our decisions and judgements.

We have all heard the idiom Dont judge a book by its cover. However, often, thats
exactly what we do. We make impressions in an instant. Sometimes, we are required to
make snap judgements about people, situations and the like. The danger arises when we
move ahead assuming our judgements to be perfectly sound. There is a scope for error in
any decision we take, be it spontaneous or deliberate, but more so in the former case. We
may have to reassess our decision at a later date. Initially we look, but we do not have the
time to see.




















*Perceptual Processes, Udai Pareek