What’s a Worldview?

As I wrote in the introductory ezine of this series, Wikipedia defines worldview as providing, “…a consistent (to a varying degree) and integral sense of existence and provides a framework for generating, sustaining, and applying knowledge.”  As large as this definition is, worldview also determines how you make sense of the world, how you relate to others, and the way you perceive reality.  It colors the way you feel about your employer, your job, your co-workers and your day-to-day life.  This first issue will shine a light on the nature and meaning of a worldview.

 It’s Unconscious

You might think that your worldview is a collection of your beliefs; it’s actually much larger than that.  Worldview frames your every-waking moment.  It determines your first thought when you wake up, your feelings, your attitude, and your expectations.  Every moment of your day is influenced by your worldview.  And you are probably only rarely, if ever, aware of it, because it’s always been there.  It’s hard to imagine that “something” directs your life and you’re unaware of it.  But that’s precisely what your worldview is.

 One way of looking at your worldview is to consider the spectrum of optimism and pessimism.  All of us live on this scale, and you probably find that you have an overall view of the world that leans toward optimism or pessimism.  You may think a specific situation determines whether you are optimistic or pessimistic about an occurrence and its outcome, but most of the time, no matter the situation, you are primarily more optimistic or pessimistic.  Once you figure out your preference, you don’t need to change it; you might, however, want to explore how it frames your understanding and reaction to the events of your life. I’m not asking you to change your preference one way or the other, but rather to explore how it frames the way you perceive your world.

Part of making life more substantial is to make the unconscious, conscious.  I’m encouraging you to begin to reflect on what your worldview might be, and to recognize its role in your life.

 It is What it Is

There is no way to avoid having a worldview.  You need it to function in your life.  You might feel tempted to justify or judge your worldview.  I’d encourage you not to do that at first:  the best way to explore what your worldview actually is, is to simply be curious.  Investigate the ideas, beliefs, thoughts, evaluations, judgments and preferences that fill your day.  Just notice them for now.  Later on you can study them more thoroughly if you wish.  But for now, recognize that everyone has a worldview and it helps you function in the world.

 Let me give you a personal example.  I met someone recently who made me uncomfortable.  She behaved strangely; a psychologist might say she had little “affect.”  When she spoke to me, I couldn’t tell at all how she was reacting.  Her tone of voice didn’t change; her expression didn’t change as we conversed.  She was just there.  When I reflect on how my worldview affected our interaction, I realized that I felt she wasn’t normal; that there was something wrong with her; that I had an expectation of a range of facial expressions or thoughts that she “should” share.    I could explain my reaction even more here, but what I recognized was that my worldview, neither good nor bad, was guiding my analysis of, and my reaction to her.  Whether my analysis was helpful or not, accurate or not was not the issue.  What was fascinating to me was that I had a huge collection of experiences, beliefs, education, temperament and ideas about human behavior.  And that determined how I saw this woman and interacted with her.

Although you may think your worldview is true and permanent, it can actually be flexible, permeable and subject to growth.  Every time you change your ideas about something, some part of your worldview has been transformed.  Even for little changes in perception, your worldview shifts to accommodate the change; the change might be a constriction or an expansion of how you see your world.  This idea is helpful to remember when you are absolutely certain of a view, belief, idea, concept or any other aspect of your consciousness.  There is nothing wrong with your certainty, except when it prevents you from seeing clearly and being open to learning.  When you insist on maintaining your worldview over time in the face of new information, you risk living a rigid, unsatisfying and isolated life.  Modifying, expanding and nurturing your worldview can be difficult, but it can also be rewarding.  In the next issue, I’ll discuss the impact of your worldview on how you see the world