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Perception is reality...

lewisnotmiller

Grand Hat
Staff member
Premium Member
...said a Project Manager who reported to me. His point, if pithily communicated, was that a happy client was a happy client, regardless of how well we were meeting their needs, and an upset client was an upset client, regardless of how well we were meeting their needs.

'Hmmm...', I said, really wanting to tell him the project was a mess, despite the happy client.

'It's one of my closest held beliefs. There is no reality, ultimately. It's all just our perception.'

'Okay. Shut your eyes.'

He shut his eyes. I punched him hard in the arm. I figured it was a good way to suggest that reality was reality.

I dunno if it was an effective way to make my point, but it certainly made me feel better.
 

lewisnotmiller

Grand Hat
Staff member
Premium Member
By the way, this is a 100% true story. Happened about 2 years ago.
Funny little follow-up...there was a homeless guy selling magazines up the road from our office (Big Issue for any Aussies reading on).
We often stopped and had a chat, although the PM knew the guy better than I did.

One day he trotted out his perception is reality line. Without even hesitating, I punched him in the arm. The homeless guy laughed his arse off and saud 'Bet that felt pretty damn real, huh?'

Cracked me up.
 

PoetPhilosopher

Veteran Member
By the way, this is a 100% true story. Happened about 2 years ago.
Funny little follow-up...there was a homeless guy selling magazines up the road from our office (Big Issue for any Aussies reading on).
We often stopped and had a chat, although the PM knew the guy better than I did.

One day he trotted out his perception is reality line. Without even hesitating, I punched him in the arm. The homeless guy laughed his arse off and saud 'Bet that felt pretty damn real, huh?'

Cracked me up.

One time on a website, there was a guy who read like 20 books, and was a bit snobby and didn't want to debate me because he said he was at a higher intellectual level than me. So he tells me he'll tell me a little about the subject I asked about, and he talked about believing that perception = reality. I said pretty much what I said here - you may perceive two mushrooms as being the same, but without sufficient knowledge, one could poison you. He then went into a rant I quite enjoyed, saying "I don't know why people bring up these stupid examples. I don't think in that way. I don't even think about situations like that."

I laughed to myself.
 

lewisnotmiller

Grand Hat
Staff member
Premium Member
One time on a website, there was a guy who read like 20 books, and was a bit snobby and didn't want to debate me because he said he was at a higher intellectual level than me. So he tells me he'll tell me a little about the subject I asked about, and he talked about believing that perception = reality. I said pretty much what I said here - you may perceive two mushrooms as being the same, but without sufficient knowledge, one could poison you. He then went into a rant I quite enjoyed, saying "I don't know why people bring up these stupid examples. I don't think in that way. I don't even think about situations like that."

I laughed to myself.

I would have laughed alongside you. Some people feel much more comfortable with esoteric arguments, and not the reality of having to implement anything, or deal with real life constraints. Less mud in the clouds.
 

Heyo

Veteran Member
...said a Project Manager who reported to me. His point, if pithily communicated, was that a happy client was a happy client, regardless of how well we were meeting their needs, and an upset client was an upset client, regardless of how well we were meeting their needs.

'Hmmm...', I said, really wanting to tell him the project was a mess, despite the happy client.

'It's one of my closest held beliefs. There is no reality, ultimately. It's all just our perception.'

'Okay. Shut your eyes.'

He shut his eyes. I punched him hard in the arm. I figured it was a good way to suggest that reality was reality.

I dunno if it was an effective way to make my point, but it certainly made me feel better.
Reality has the propensity to bite you in the behind eventually if you ignore it. But when refuse to feel the bite you can live for a long time without reality.
 

rational experiences

Veteran Member
My dog and cat died from unnatural life cell conditions when I got irradiated.

Lately I have been picking large plate mushrooms. Once however must have picked a toadstool. Got sick. Ate an orange last night it has pith one piece of it in the floor. Have horses too.

My husband training at work. Mud put in my mouth in a dream yesterday. Seemed real.

I think NDE studies produced evidence of humans life records revealed. Then you have mind contact studies.

No more secret thoughts when science decided you are a machine mind.

Not operatives are you?
 

Viker

Häxan
...said a Project Manager who reported to me. His point, if pithily communicated, was that a happy client was a happy client, regardless of how well we were meeting their needs, and an upset client was an upset client, regardless of how well we were meeting their needs.

'Hmmm...', I said, really wanting to tell him the project was a mess, despite the happy client.

'It's one of my closest held beliefs. There is no reality, ultimately. It's all just our perception.'

'Okay. Shut your eyes.'

He shut his eyes. I punched him hard in the arm. I figured it was a good way to suggest that reality was reality.

I dunno if it was an effective way to make my point, but it certainly made me feel better.
No matter the philosophical quandary. At the end of the day, you got to punch someone. I consider that a bonus.
 

Brian2

Veteran Member
...said a Project Manager who reported to me. His point, if pithily communicated, was that a happy client was a happy client, regardless of how well we were meeting their needs, and an upset client was an upset client, regardless of how well we were meeting their needs.

'Hmmm...', I said, really wanting to tell him the project was a mess, despite the happy client.

'It's one of my closest held beliefs. There is no reality, ultimately. It's all just our perception.'

'Okay. Shut your eyes.'

He shut his eyes. I punched him hard in the arm. I figured it was a good way to suggest that reality was reality.

I dunno if it was an effective way to make my point, but it certainly made me feel better.

Reality is reality and is real but our perceptions of the reality can make us happy in a seemingly hopeless situation or make us unhappy when we are down to our last million dollars or can make us feel justified in our actions when we should be ashamed etc.
 

Martin

Spam, wonderful spam (bloody vikings!)
I'm not as forward as this. During philosophical discussions I've occasionally suggested that the other person should try dropping a brick on their foot, though I assumed they didn't take me literally. :p
 
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Erebus

Well-Known Member
...said a Project Manager who reported to me. His point, if pithily communicated, was that a happy client was a happy client, regardless of how well we were meeting their needs, and an upset client was an upset client, regardless of how well we were meeting their needs.

'Hmmm...', I said, really wanting to tell him the project was a mess, despite the happy client.

'It's one of my closest held beliefs. There is no reality, ultimately. It's all just our perception.'

'Okay. Shut your eyes.'

He shut his eyes. I punched him hard in the arm. I figured it was a good way to suggest that reality was reality.

I dunno if it was an effective way to make my point, but it certainly made me feel better.

Hmmm there are some flaws in your approach here. How do you know that the project manager is actually a conscious being? He could just be an automaton that behaves appropriately to any given situation but lacks any sort of real awareness. Or maybe he's just an image conjured by your unconscious mind that's trying to tell you that you're in the matrix. Is there even a way to tell?

Maybe keep punching him until you're certain.
 

lewisnotmiller

Grand Hat
Staff member
Premium Member
Reality is reality and is real but our perceptions of the reality can make us happy in a seemingly hopeless situation or make us unhappy when we are down to our last million dollars or can make us feel justified in our actions when we should be ashamed etc.

Totally agree!
 

Heyo

Veteran Member
I'm not as forward as this. During philosophical discussions I've occasionally suggested that the other person should try dropping a brick on their foot, though I assumed they didn't take me literally. :p
That's why you never debate with solipsists online. Unless you can drop that brick yourself, you are on a losing path.
 

lewisnotmiller

Grand Hat
Staff member
Premium Member
Hmmm there are some flaws in your approach here.

Entirely possible. I'm more a big-picture kinda guy.

How do you know that the project manager is actually a conscious being? He could just be an automaton that behaves appropriately to any given situation but lacks any sort of real awareness.

I suspect you're right. But isn't that true of ALL project managers?

Or maybe he's just an image conjured by your unconscious mind that's trying to tell you that you're in the matrix. Is there even a way to tell?

Mostly when my mind conjures images they're hotter. And more female. And less Project Managery.


Maybe keep punching him until you're certain.

Best. Advice. Ever.
 

ChristineM

"Be strong", I whispered to my coffee.
Premium Member
ie, poisonous mushrooms in nature. So perception = reality isn't a real good belief to have, there.

I go mushroom hunting a few times a year. Only ever found one poison mushroom, looked very much like a white but...

In france there is a free service. Take you mushrooms to the chemist, they examine them and discard the poison ones.

The service was set up because too many peeps were dying...
 

Brian2

Veteran Member
I go mushroom hunting a few times a year. Only ever found one poison mushroom, looked very much like a white but...

In france there is a free service. Take you mushrooms to the chemist, they examine them and discard the poison ones.

The service was set up because too many peeps were dying...

I had a friend who liked the psychoactive effects of some mushrooms and used to eat fly agaric for that even though he knew they were dangerous. He did this by only eating a small section at a time.
 
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