Framing: How You See The View In Front of You

Perception and how you see a person, place or thing can be deceiving, but we must know that we are not truly defined by the view, but rather the experience. Framing, according to Dr. Frank Luntz, author of “Words That Work: It’s Not What You Say, It’s How People Hear,” brings many answers to today’s society and how we think. Luntz states that sometimes it’s not what you say that matters, but what you don’t say, I often find this to be the case in everyday life. Take, for instance, the use of the words “black people” and “white people” or to some “blacks” and “whites.” While many others prefer to these terms as “African American” rather than “Afro-American” as an option, we must understand that it’s not all true for all people of darker pigmentation. Many “blacks” in this country are not American the trick is finding out how people see themselves. It’s interesting how we respond to particular things in a certain manner, and because of that I have learned that the truth is not always what we seek. Chris Mooney, author of “Breaking The Frame,” suggests that “If the facts don’t fit the frame, it’s the facts that are rejected, not the frame.” In essence the frame never changed, the facts you brought to the frame, needs altering. “How we perceive, ultimately makes a difference.” We may be concerned about the truth; however, the issue is what we perceive as the truth. We use emotions to make sense of the world, and many choices are influenced by our emotions. Framing is all around us every day; deciphering through it, however, is not so easy. I like how Walter Lippmann puts it; He says that “people use mental shortcuts to make sense of the world,” which suggests that “we define first, and then see.” If we can connect new information with already stored information of the world through cues then we sometimes undermine ourselves. Frames allow us to forget certain information and to invent other details because it’s the frame that is now effective in our mind. We have to be careful of pre-conceived notions on any level because its’ not always well and can lead to miss-interpretation. We as people need to be more careful as to what is being presented to us and try our best to make the right decision on how we truly should respond, not how the frame may seem to be, because after all the truth you brought to the table may not be the truth that fits that frame. My challenge is that we all take the time to be more open and un-bias when traveling along this journey of life. We may find that we can understand people, places or things better and can go further in that presented situation, because we took the time to learn who or what we are dealing with, verses a created mental pre-conceived notion to operate in dealing with that person, place or thing. Blessings to you on enhancing how you view the FRAMES of life!