The Last Word

By Tony Tang | Posted: Monday May 22, 2023

Changing your perspective can make your life a whole lot better.

I would like to share examples from 3 aspects of my life to prove that.

I used to hate the hostel, but now, I’m grateful to be part of it. I was on a steep learning curve when I first came to New Zealand. Life was like a survival game. But then, as someone pointed out, I was giving myself stress. So slowly, I started to change my perspective to worry less. Welcoming the adversities of life, now I’m thankful that I have more common sense and know how to deal with more types of people.

Then it’s the academic side. At the start of last year, a not achieved result in DVC stabbed me right in the back. I couldn’t understand where I went wrong as everything matched the marking schedule. The reconsideration was still not achieved, and NZQA gave no explanation. I felt hopeless and didn’t have any more motivation to keep pushing for Level 2. It was a miserable term 1. A similar thing happened in Formula 1 the year before as well. If anyone here follows it, you’ll know about the 2021 Abu Dhabi situation where Michael Masi did not follow the rules and Lewis Hamilton got his 8th world championship taken off him. But after I saw Lewis’s decision to come back to the sport, I changed my mind. I realised it was not my problem that I didn’t get the grade I deserved and felt alive again. Fast forward to the start of this year, same thing, different level. This time, it’s English. But with the experience from the previous year. I handled this one much better. Because life is not fair already, you will feel much happier if you know that.

Lastly, it’s for people who have an interest in gyming. I have only been gyming for the past four months to release stress. But it also gives me pressure in other ways. I would often look into the mirror after a set and think 'Man, this guy is useless'. After a while, I can no longer feel the pump mentally. So I looked back at my journey and changed my perspective again. I couldn’t even bench the 20kg bar at the start of the year, but now I can do reps at 40kg. It may not sound like a lot to people, but it’s great if there’s an improvement. Now I can feel the pump again.

If I hadn’t changed my perspective in those three situations, I wouldn’t be where I am right now. So, trust me gents, when I say change your perspective, it will help you along the way. I’ll finish with the second half of a quote from Marcus Aurelius: “Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth.”