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What’s fascinating about mirrors and windows is that both are made of glass, yet they serve entirely different purposes. A mirror helps you look inward, offering self-reflection. A window, on the other hand, allows you to look outward, revealing the world around you. Each plays a unique role in shaping how you see and understand life—and sometimes, that window can unexpectedly become a mirror.

Consider this: when you gaze out of a window, you observe what’s happening in the world. When you look into a mirror, you examine yourself, your emotions, your identity, your truth. Both offer a view, but the perspective changes depending on where you’re looking from. Together, the window and mirror shape your worldview. What you witness externally influences your internal understanding, and your mirror, your sense of self, helps you process it all.

Now, let’s take the metaphor further. Your eyes become the windows to the world. And your mind and heart serve as the mirror. As you move through life, you see, interpret, and respond. But over time, something shifts. What you see is no longer purely what’s out there—it becomes filtered by beliefs, biases, and assumptions. Your mirror—your internal lens—becomes cloudy. Instead of understanding the world, you begin to only see what confirms your expectations.

So, how can we be more open and understanding—both in what we observe and how we reflect? Here are some practical and thoughtful ways to clean the mirror and open the window a little wider:

• Lead with curiosity over making judgment – It is easy to react to something and immediately say it is wrong as a reaction but pull back and ask yourself, why someone might see a different perspective.
• Align yourself with more different perspectives – This can be done by travelling, reading books or attending events to try and understand other perspectives.
• Discomfort is not a bad thing – You might encounter discomfort by being in a place or conversation that differs but be open to the conversation and look for common ground and not what divides us.
• Ask questions – By asking questions, it allows us to appreciate and understand why someone might be different from us.
• Fill in the gaps – What you understand to be true, may only be partially correct because you have not filled in all the gaps that your mind may not focus on.
• Be empathetic – Truly listen to the words but also the emotions that go along with them.

In a world that throws information rapidly and in tremendous volume, it often divides, the ability to see clearly both outward and inward. To see clearly is a rare but vital strength. The window helps us stay aware of the world around us; the mirror ensures we remain connected to who we are within it. When we intentionally open our minds and soften our hearts, we begin to see not just what is, but what also could be. Being open and understanding doesn’t mean abandoning one’s values; it means being willing to hold space for others while staying true to yourself. It’s the ongoing practice of keeping your window open and your mirror clean so you can respond with awareness, lead with empathy, and walk through the world with clarity and grace.