Zooming out.

In a picture, when we zoom in, we magnify details. We can see those details more clearly, but we loose perspective as we don’t have a view of the surrounding scene. The same is true in life. Often, we get caught in a thought or in a conflict, we cannot see our way through until we look at it from a broader perspective. Let me introduce to you a personal favorite of mine as a coach, a technique that I call “Zooming Out”.

We know we need to zoom out when we are stuck trying to make a decision or solve a conflict. Also when we find ourselves obsessing over things and getting stressed out. In Albert Einstein words, “we cannot solve problems at the same level at which we created them” so if we want to go ahead and break out, in one of those situations, we need to change our perspective

Our point of view very often determines our thought process. Let’s review visual example of that. Those of you that have seen the movie “The Davinci Code” will probably remember when professor Langdon is giving a lecture about symbols. He shows some slides, we could see symbols but we could not see the context in which they were located. Our minds completed the information and thus we could interpret them from our own personal background, values or experiences. For instance, when we saw a figure with white robes and hoods, everybody thought about the KKK, when in reality, as we saw when they showed the total picture, they are catholics in a religious procession in Spain. When he showed a close caption at a statue of a child in the lap of a female figure, everybody thought about a representation of a baby Jesus in his mother’s arms, or even an old statue symbolizing fertility. With a bigger perspective, we could all see a statue representing the God Horus in his mother, Isis, arms.

When we feel trapped in a conflict, we are acustomed to going over and over the same thought process. For example: I am tired of this job and my monetary situation. I want to earn more money. I want to be my own boss. Therefore, I should or I want to set up my own business. However, I don’t have money to invest, so I can’t. Besides, I don’t have time either to set up a new business because my job takes all my energy and time. Hence, we end up where we started. It is clear that if we apply the same premises every time we think about a situation, we will arrive to the same conclusion. Here is when a “zooming out” comes in very handy. We zoom out by not focusing upon the situation we have here and now, and focusing on the situation we want to have. This is equivaent to a zoom out because the new situation is further from us and our perspective is broader as we don’t have all the specific details yet. This can twe thought of as being in one specific geographical point, and wanting to be in another without knowing yet what the name of the street is. We just zoom out our “mapquest” or “Yahoo-map” from the point we are now, until the desired destination area is visible on our screen. Then, and only then, we can trace a path towards it.

Relationships can also be thought of in the same manner. In a given moment we can have a problem with our partner. He did something to me that I hate, so I am angry. It is difficult for me to deal with those feelings, and every time I think about it the only thing that comes to my mind is what he did, so I just fuel my feelings and reinforce my separation. If I try to solve that conflict with my partner from that position, there is not much room for maneuver, because we are focusing upon a narrow point. When we zoom out, we include in the view a much richer history of bonding, love and forgiveness. From this point, it is much easier to find solid ground for working towards communion.

In short, “zooming out” is a process that allows us to look at situations from a broader perspective, and it is very useful when we are stuck trying to solve a problem or conflict. Why don’t you try it next time you feel like you don’t know what to do? I hope you find it helpful. I will be happy to hear about your experiences using this method.