Perception Feedback

Christian Working Woman Transcript

Monday, June 04, 2007 - Perception Feedback


Perception equals reality! You've probably heard that somewhere before. I am convinced that if I want to be everything I can be, use my gifts to their fullest, take advantage of all the opportunities God brings my way, and represent Jesus Christ most effectively, I have to continually focus on how I am perceived by others, because indeed, perception equals reality.

That simply means that we are all good at judging books by their cover, jumping to quick conclusions, and relying on first impressions. Now, quite frankly, all of us need to work harder at not doing those things, because more often than not our first impressions are either wrong or very incomplete, and inside those books we discover something quite different from the cover. But the facts are, people do and I'm sure always will jump to conclusions, and you and I need to be aware of the perception others have of us.

Why? Well, not because we are living to try to please people or because we need the approval of others. And certainly not because we are trying to appear to be anything that we are not. But we need to be concerned with how we are perceived because we are ambassadors for Jesus Christ, and we want to do the best job we can to represent Him favorably. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 8:21, For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord but also in the eyes of men. Also, we need to be concerned about how others perceive us because if their perception is wrong, it can hold us back and do damage to us.

Few people ever intentionally try to create a bad impression or perception. Most of us are doing our best to do things right. But we need to develop ways to get "perception feedback," and find out how others perceive us. Some years ago I was speaking at a woman's seminar, and half way through the day one of the women sent me a note. It was a very nicely written note but it was a direct criticism, suggesting that a certain way I was presenting something gave a bad impression.Once I got over the initial react stage, I realized she had given me some valuable "perception feedback," and I immediately made the change she suggested, which improved my presentation. Mind you, I never intended to create a bad impression and had no idea the audience could perceive what I was saying in a negative way. But once I had that perception feedback, I put myself in my audience's shoes and said, "You know, she's right." Then I made the change and improved my presentation! So who benefited? Me mostly!