Day 19: Taken For Granted

 Day 19 of "21 Days of Distinction"

I take a lot of things for granted at times if I'm being honest. I'm often in a hurry; busy thinking about myself and my stuff most of the time. As a result, I miss things sometimes. I think this is true for everyone... again if we're being honest.

The problem with this is obvious. Inherent to taking things for granted is overlooking much that deserves a second or third look perhaps. So much out there and within here deserves our attention. It's only when we slow down enough to pause and pay attention, do we really begin to notice. And it's this noticing through increased awareness that the magnificence of life becomes apparent. This concept is the engine that drives my photography, and the foundation through which I communicate my messages. Pay attention to your attention.

The Way I See It: Attentive perception precedes effective communication.

I've driven by the old abandoned gas station above countless times over the years. Only when I really looked at it and saw it for what it could be, did this ordinary scene have the potential to become extraordinary. So finally, on one cold and rainy evening, I sat and waited and shot until I felt I captured what I saw in my mind's eye. What I actually ended up with is better than what I imagined. Funny how that frequently happens provided I do my part first...

The rhetorical questions now also become obvious: How many other people, places, and things in our lives deserve another look? What addtional value is truly there provided we actively observe?

Ensuing perception that evolves into perspective is what truly "seeing things" is all about.

And gaining perspective, rather than taking for granted, is the whole point.

→ Excerpt from the forthcoming book: "Seeing Things"... Passages of Perspective

©2010 Tom Leu

Day 18: Move

Day 18 of "21 Days of Distinction"

It's so easy to be a pessimist. It's so easy to be negative. It's so easy to jump on the complain train. How come?

Why is it so easy to focus on and embrace the bad stuff more than the good stuff sometimes? Managing loss, by choice, has become an art form for many. Much more challenging is the choice to search for solutions.

The Way I See It: Life is too long to wallow in the past negative, and too short to procrastinate the present positive.

The beginning of a new year births the anticipation that things will be OK... that things will be better... that things will be good. Choosing this unspoken optimism enforces those feelings and influences those outcomes throughout the rest of the year.

Now is the time to act on them...

Your move.

→ Excerpt from the forthcoming book: "Seeing Things"... Passages of Perspective

©2010 Tom Leu