You know this situation: You were at an event with a friend and afterwards they are telling a completely different story about what happened than you do. They have a totally different idea of what was going on back there.
The way we experience and interpret the world inside our heads is very different for each human. It is strongly connected to our past, our current state, our opinions, beliefs, hopes and our given cognitive structures. That very often leads to a variety of outlooks in a group of people on one and the same thing.
The fact that these outlooks can be this different doesn't mean that there is no truth in them. Actually, the way in which we see the world corresponds very well with the "real" reality that lies outside of our brains. Otherwise we wouldn't be able to handle the world so well in general. Our senses and our interpretations match the outer world to a fairly good degree. If our eyes wouldn't show us the real world, but some blurry abstract picture, we would probably trip over stones all the time and bump into trees. The same goes for for our thoughts, of course. The way we think didn't magically pop out of nowhere and now we have to live with it. It is a result of our learning and past circumstances.
But still, our beliefs are no ultimate truth, as we all experience from time to time, when we confront those uncomfortable moments when the wold fails our expectations or when someone disagrees with our outlook on how things are.
Our thoughts give us good ideas about how reality is, but they still exist inside our heads, and inside our heads only. They are a description of the world.
Let's look at them like this: For every brain there is a truth. All truths are equally valid and each serves its own specific purpose for the life of the human that holds it. They all represent one part of reality.
Now, what does that mean for us?
Nature equipped us with quite powerful gear: eyes, ears, skin, feelings, a mind. Those were made by whatever force one may believe in that brought humans into this world, so that we can use this gear to perceive and understand nature around us. There is no reason to mistrust now what has guided our survival all throughout human history so far.
Just don't expect your individual "gear" to hold the ultimate truth for any and every situation.
Realizing this leads to an interesting new possibility.
If the truth one holds about the world is an individual one and the individual knows that, he or she can awarely have an impact on it.
You are going to hold a picture of the world inside your head for the rest of your life anyways. There is no way you can sneak around that. This picture is likely to be shaped by your past, your surroundings, the things you have learned yourself and, to a large part, by what other people have told you to be true.
If you are going to hold some sort of picture of reality anyways, you might as well have a say in what you want it to look like. Why not make it one that supports you? Why not make it one that helps you attract the things into your life you wish for?
If you are gonna take a look at the world, you might as well do it from the top of the mountain instead of the deep hole down in the earth.
No one can argue that the view from inside the hole is wrong or that it doesn't show reality. But the same goes for the mountain top. Each of them describes a different angle of the landscape.
From which of them you see the world can be chosen in two ways.
Either you let it happen randomly and take as true whatever you learn from your surroundings. Or you do it actively. You make the effort to climb the mountain top in order for you to have a better viewpoint, from which in the end you may be able to see a bigger picture, in the same way you can see the world beneath you when you stand on the tip of the mountain.
If you find your life boring, get a more adventurous outlook on things. Look for possibilities, take chances, be an explorer.
If you would like to be happier, look for more reasons to smile.
If you want to help others, get the attitude of a helper. Place the belief inside your head that you are capable of helping someone everyday.
Start searching for the perception you want and you will get it.
(It's an unfamiliar process for your mind at first, so don't give up after the first try.)
The beliefs in your head serve as your rulebook for playing this game called life. If you are gonna play anyways, you might as well make them fit the goal you are going towards.
This does not mean you shouldn't keep your perception as close to reality as you can.
The better your rulebook matches the game, the better you can play. But if you are going to think about the world anyways, you might as well think positive, so that you get a chance to play in the most desireable way possible for you.
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