Why is it something so obvious to everyone else is a blindspot for us?
Is it because we choose to try and deny the undeniable or is it because, as humans we are not equipped with the right insights to see all possible angles and outcomes of our own lives.
I was having a conversation recently about self image. The person I was talking with, who has lost quite a bit of weight and is now in top shape, told me she sometimes still sees herself bigger. Her conscious self knows she is smaller, her eyes see her new svelte silhouette, her lifestyle has changed to reflect her new body but she still thinks of herself as larger than she actually is. Even though everyone tells her how great she looks, her projection of herself has a blindspot.
Now before I get comments about the psychology of body image, let me add another example. My sister and I were having coffee this morning and she asked me what were my plans for the near future. I have been in stationary mode for a while now and want desperately to move forward in my life but have not been able to latch on to my next big passion. I can make lists, analyze my strengths and weaknesses, take self help quizzes, meditate, and reflect, but I can not see a way forward. On this topic I am blind.
So I asked her what did she think I should do? She quickly offered me advice that my myopic perspective had been unable to see yet seemed so obvious to her.
I will add one more example. *These sampling have all come up in my life this week so that’s why I am using them. An older relative of mine, having failed to develop strategies for inevitable aged related health issues, after being counselled many times to do just that, is now upset that the consequences are now knocking on his door. Is it stubbornness, maybe denial, or an arrogance in him that made him act this way or was it a personal blindspot and he actually couldn’t see what was about to happen?
It’s the old not being able to see the forest for the trees. Why do we have these blocks?Everyone has trouble seeing the truth about some issue in their life. For some it is a blindspot in a relationship and they can’t see that this person is bad for them. For some it is a self inflicted obstruction and they are unable to access the insight needed to see the truth and for others it is a protective mechanism either borne out of naiveté or ignorance.
Whatever the cause and for whatever the reason, humans will continue to have personal blindspots and the rest of us will continue to shake our heads incredulously, amazed that the afflicted are so aimlessly in the dark.
