Reframing

Hello.
Aoyagi here.

This week's column is about "reframing."

In my previous column, I mentioned that "recovery" was one of the elements that make up luck, and I feel that this "ability to recover" and reframing are quite similar.

Just hearing the word "reframing" might sound a bit difficult, and it uses a foreign word which might seem a little showy, but its meaning is simple.


Even the same event can be perceived and understood differently by changing one's perspective.


That is reframing.





For example,


You were walking and took a wrong turn.
→ Instead of thinking "I wasted time,"
think "I learned about an unfamiliar path"
or "I got some good exercise."

Your plans were cancelled.
→ Instead of thinking "I have nothing to do,"
think "I have some free time for myself."


It's like that.


You can't change what happened, but depending on how you interpret it, your subsequent feelings and actions can change quite a bit.

Of course, this doesn't mean you should force yourself to turn negative events into positive ones.

Difficult things are difficult, and unpleasant things are unpleasant, and that's okay.


Just change your perspective.





One of my favorite phrases is, "The past can be changed."

While the facts of what happened cannot be changed, the meaning of those events can change over time.

What seemed like the worst thing at the time might, in retrospect, be seen as a necessary detour, or that experience might have led to where you are now.


For example, I dropped out of vocational school.

I've felt it even more keenly since having children, but I truly feel sorry for my parents.

However, precisely because of that experience,
I could ask myself what I truly wanted to do, where I wanted to go, and what I was capable of.

It might have been a detour, but looking back, I believe that detour shaped who I am today.

I can also give my children various advice.


By incorporating the concept of reframing, you can reduce the time you spend feeling down and act more positively!

One might call it optimistic, I suppose (laughs).