Jeff’s Journal
By Jeff Whitaker
I just saw a beautiful picture of a rainbow. You might think that isn’t very impressive. We’ve all seen a rainbow. But there was something different about this rainbow. I’ve never seen anything like it. The picture was taken from 30 thousand feet above the earth. The difference in this photo was that it was a full circle. Here on earth we only see the arc or half of the rainbow. In reality when you get the larger perspective, the rainbow is actually a full circle. Amazing! Unless we take ourselves farther away from the scene, we are never rewarded with the full beauty of the rainbow.
It got me thinking that this parallels much of life. Many times we only see half of the picture. It may be the encouraging or it may be the discouraging half. But the point is, we rarely see the entire picture. If you are anything like me, it’s so easy to find yourself caught up in the moment. You get overly excited about something or overly stressed about something else. It’s easy to do. Perspective is something we need to be reminded of constantly. That’s not to say we shouldn’t get excited about the positive or find ourselves disappointed or down about other events in life. It’s life and it happens. But this is where balance plays a role. Just as it is with the rainbow, in life it’s never a true picture of a circumstance or situation when you are too close to it. So, how do you and I maintain a healthy balance? One way is to find others in our lives who can give us an outside perspective on a given situation. We weren’t meant to live our lives in isolation. If there is a clear negative that came out of the recent pandemic aside from the health risks and effects, it’s that being isolated from one another is not good. We all need that interaction and outside perspective from people who may be in a position to see things from another point of view.
In addition, I’ve found that time is a great revealer of so much. Steve Jobs in giving a commencement address not long before he passed away told the graduates that “you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.”
Two words to remember: perspective and balance. Hope this speaks to someone reading my column this week. And remember this, the next time you’re fortunate enough to witness a rainbow.
Jeff Whitaker is a veteran broadcaster here in South Jersey. He now draws on his experience and training to work with companies and individuals to develop effective storytelling, communications and leadership skills. Find free resources and ways Jeff can work with you at jeffwhitaker.com
