Perception, Reality, and the Search for Truth

My father was a business man. He did many despicable things, and it protects me to think of him as dead even though he isn't.

From a young age, I was always told "perception equals reality," but I always had a very distinct feeling that this was simply untrue. The truth, I felt, was greater than what one might think it is, or what one can even comprehend. While I still hold to this belief, I understand the value of the expression, and the harm possible when a person chooses to take "perception equals reality" as a mantra or life philosophy.

If it's true, the world is one big marketing ploy. If people think one thing (about a person, company, government, or religion), then it is taken as tangible and real. This is a powerful tool; a self-empowering impetus for advancement, but it is very dangerous. If others perceive a business person, politician, lawyer, husband, teacher, or religious authority to be competent and knowledgeable, then others will follow.

When combined with a culture of fear [terrorists! disease! weapons! bankruptcy!] it is easy to follow this mantra of character-building into complete chaos. The faces we present intentionally to others to alter their perception though these faces are not ours-these dreams we keep hidden, the songs we never sing-cripple us in the face of a real tragedy.

The stock market is falling. Was it ever real? Perception equals reality, especially in business, and truthfully, stocks only represent the faith of multiple people in the competence of a company. A stockholder puts up money to represent her or his confidence in a company, essentially buying the reality created by corporations. Stability of government operates in the same fashion.