When I was in New York, last October, I had black out shades in my room. The first night I didn’t use them because I didn’t know about them. My sister told me that’s why they woke up so late (that combined with jetlag). On the second night there, I used the black out shades. My alarm went off at 630am and I laid in bed listening to the news on TV. 7:30 am rolled around and I was still sleepy. The shades made it feel like night time which made it difficult to get out of bed. I KNEW it was light out, but because of the shades, I FELT it was still night time.

What’s interesting is how perceptions and beliefs affect how we make decisions. Some examples:

• I heard a storm was coming into SF one Friday and I assumed I would be fine because I didn’t return to SF until Sunday. My sister and her kids who were traveling with me told me it was raining in SF on Sunday and when we were on the final approach to SFO, my nephew said it was raining outside. After getting the luggage, the rain had stopped.
• When I arrived at Narita airport last October I had to go through security again to get to my next flight. I was expecting long lines because that was what happens 90% of the time I transit through this airport. I rushed off the plane and when I got to security, there was no one in line. Thinking about it, even with long lines, I always have plenty of time to make my connecting flight, so it was silly of me to get worried.
• I bought some Ghost Chili potato chip. Ghost Chilies are very very hot. Ten times spicier than Thai chilies. I was planning to take them on my trip to Bangkok and eat them on the plane, but I was worried that it would be too spicy for me and that I would start having a fit on the plane. So I bought them but planned on letting my wife eat them since she likes hot food.   My sister told me they were not spicy at all. I did try it at home and she was right.
• I was having breakfast at a Starbucks in Bangkok and I ordered an almond cream croissant. I would expect the pastry to cost more than coffee(like it does in America); however, the pastry was only half the price of the coffee (115 baht for the grande coffee and 65 baht for the pastry). What was funny is that I never order pastries at Starbucks because it is expensive. When I went to Bangkok, even though I could see that pastries are cheaper, my mind ignored what I saw and I would automatically say “no” when asked if I wanted something to eat. My perception won out over reality.

In the end, I have to put aside my beliefs when looking at situations. My beliefs cause me to be judgmental and prevent me from fairly assessing situations. Even with all the evidence before me, I hold on to my old views. In prior posts I would talk about my beliefs about my son which cloud my judgement. Even as he changes and matures, I still hold on to my old beliefs about him even though they are no longer true. It’s time to change my views and there is no time like the present.