If there is one thing I have learned in life it’s that we are all so different in the way we perceive the world. This is largely because the billions of stimuli and feedback in relation to our life’s experiences have all been unique. There is no-one who has had the same set of experiences that we have. When this is combined with the interactivity of those experiences, the outcome can result in huge differences between individuals and their relative perceptions of the world, aside of genetic differences.
The world we view through our retina, and experience through our neurotransmitters is absolutely unique to us, because we bring into the equation memories, emotions and past experiences which affect, distort or enhance our perceptions. There is no absolute reality as far as most of our daily living is concerned. None of us truly know what it would be like to operate in the world through the ‘eyes’ (literal and metaphorical) of someone else. There are obviously broad similarities between the experiences of distinct groups of similarly placed sectors of society – socio economically, culturally and otherwise, but even so, we all have our own unique computation of experiences – our own thumbprint of experience, so to speak, which affects how we view and react to everything.
One person can open the bedroom curtains in the morning to be greeted by a dull, overcast sky, remembering, with a groan, that it is refuse collection day, as all the neighbours’ bins are out, and she has forgotten to put hers out. This is likely to cause her to be late for work, the thought of work then causes a sinking feeling in her stomach. This is followed by a further drop in mood when she catches a sideways glance of herself in the mirror, without make-up and with hair awry.
Another person, maybe in the same life scenario, but with a different perception, would wake up, open the curtains and be pleased that the gentle dove grey sky was the start of another enjoyable day, and that the rain had held off. She would then be delighted to see the neighbours’ bins lined up, as this reminded her it was refuse collection day, and she would have time to quickly put her bin out. She then catches herself in the mirror and is pleased that her make-up and hair routine will transform her appearance so that she can enjoy the challenges of the day.
Who would you rather be?
Who we are and how we react to the same stimuli is a result of all of the years of our experiences. Most of these have been provided by parents, teachers, groups we belong to, and peers. Those in the world around us have reinforced aspects of our behaviour, our demeanour, our interactions, our appearance and our articulations.
This has served to mould us in a way that may not be most befitting for a happy and fulfilling life. Sometimes these manipulations are overt and we recognise them (chastising parents/teachers, teasing or cruel peers), and at other times more subtle (a disparaging look, or an encouraging smile).
In general, as humans, we seek approval, and as infants and children learning our way, we copy. If therefore, we are brought up in a household where communications are vocal and frequent, we emerge differently from someone brought up in a home where there is little verbal interaction, and where communications are conducted in a quiet, polite way.
Because we learn outside of the home too, and we have both negative and positive reinforcements in relation to all aspects of ourselves, the larger picture is more complex. We can therefore rebel against parental or school teachings if we believe they have not served us well in relation to peer acceptance, for example.
Mostly we do not give a passing thought to how we have become who we are. We usually put it down to nature and genetics, but nurture has the greater contribution. The exciting thing is that we can change our perceptions and our lives, if we recognise the influence of extraneous factors and decide to become more involved in our own destiny, by understanding how to filter out the things that are preventing us from being who we want to be, and by taking control rather than being controlled.
We may have heard of the adage: ‘It’s not what life deals you, it’s how you deal with life’. That is a great liberator. No matter what you think is not right in your life, you can make it so, by your attitude to it.
It can be incredibly beneficial to take time out and assess who we have become and whether we want to continue down that route or make changes (significant or minor). We should take care not to be unduly influenced by others, as they can (sometimes subconsciously) have their own interests uppermost in their motivations, or they are simply not privy to our emotions, thoughts and desires, in the same way.
Even we ourselves often don’t know what our true desires are and we have to really take the time to analyse these. You could be trapped in a job that you don’t love; you may be unhappy with aspects of your appearance, or with some of your relationships. But as with almost all things, you can bring about the changes for improvements and increased happiness. This is sometimes by making actual changes, and sometimes by simply changing the way you view things.
At SkinFirst we have 2 aspects to our business: we sell machines which are an advance on traditional IPL and Laser systems and also safe, comfortable and effective radio frequency systems to beauty salons and medical practitioners, and we also conduct training in the treatments that these systems can perform. In tandem, we provide treatments to our local clients. We find that we are able, through both of these channels, to help people who have decided to bring about positive changes in their lives, and take control.
We help many people take that move into self-employment, or expand their businesses with the training, equipment and support we provide, and we also help people to improve aspects of their appearance which they are unhappy with, and which may be holding them back.
At SkinFirst we help you to take action to address many of the physical concerns you have, such as unwanted hair, acne, skin tags, rosacea, thread veins, pigmentation and visible signs of ageing, including slack skin and lines and wrinkles.
The reason why we want you to look good on the outside is because that will help you to feel better on the inside; and that is the more important aspect. We feel very passionately about this and would love to welcome you for a free consultation.
We also help people who are looking to offer skin tightening and lifting, permanent hair reduction and other treatments, to be trained to the highest standards and with the latest and safest equipment.
Whoever you are and in whatever way you think we may be able to help you, you won’t know until you pick up that phone or email us. It could just be the best thing you ever did!
Please call us on 01925 446688 or email contact@skinfirst.co.uk.
The SkinFirst Team.
