EP 3628 asks a simple question with uncomfortable consequences: are you reacting to what is happening, or to the meaning you've assigned to it?

"We see things as we are, not as they are" is a reminder that your nervous system, your history, your expectations, and your current stress level all colour the story you tell yourself. Two people can live the same moment and walk away with completely different "truths" because perception is never neutral.

In this episode, I break down how that distortion shows up in real life: reading disrespect into a neutral comment, assuming rejection when someone is quiet, treating uncertainty as danger, and making decisions from fear while calling it logic. When you do that long enough, you end up living in a world that feels hostile, unfair, and exhausting, even when it isn't.

Here's the practical move: before you react, separate facts from interpretation.

1. Write the facts in one sentence. Only what a camera would catch.

2. Write your interpretation in one sentence. The story you're running.

3. Ask: "What evidence would change my mind?" If the answer is "nothing," you're not being honest, you're being emotional.

4. Choose the response that matches the facts, not the story.

This isn't about being positive. It's about being accurate. Accuracy makes you calmer, more decisive, and harder to manipulate. It also stops you pouring energy into people who only take, because you'll finally see the pattern clearly instead of explaining it away.