8. Open-Mindedness

[Bruce M.]

There is divine beauty in learning, just as there is human beauty in tolerance. To learn means to accept the postulate that life did not begin at my birth. Others have been here before me, and I walk in their footsteps. The books I have read were composed by generations of fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, teachers and disciples. I am the sum total of their experiences, their quests. And so are you.–Elie Wiesel

Defined as:…
receptive to arguments or ideas…


One thing I have come to realize in my inventories is that I am a very narrow thinker. I was brought up with a certain set of beliefs about myself, my fellow man, and the world in general. Some of them beliefs were not my own. For me to be able to have quality in my life and my recovery I needed to examine them beliefs and sort out the ones that have not served me well. Before that could happen I needed to open up my mind to some new information. Life has no other discipline to impose, if I would but realize it, than to accept life unquestioningly. Everything I shut my eyes to, everything I run away from, everything I deny, or despise, serves to defeat me in the end. What seems nasty, painful, evil, can become a source of beauty, joy, and strength, if I face it with an open mind. Every moment is a golden one for those who have the vision to recognize it as such. My unwarranted stubbornness of someone’s opinion breeds intolerance. Having an open mind does not mean that I never come to my own convictions in life. From my experience it is perfectly possible for me to have an open mind and live a very principled life. Having an open mind means being prepared to question even my most core beliefs. It means being open, when the time comes, to having my mind changed by an argument that proves better than my own. It means being able to think of all sides of an issue. The sides I think are true, and the sides I think are false. It also means being able to suspend my beliefs, to play the devil’s advocate, and to detach myself somewhat from my own beliefs, actions and feelings. Only living with an open mind gives me a chance to grow and change, for change is inevitable, while growth, is not. I never want to stop learning and adapting. The world will always be changing. If I limit myself to what I think I know and what I am comfortable with, I sometimes get frustrated with my life, and grow increasingly frustrated with my surroundings. This is a dangerous place for me to be in. Another huge benefit to open-mindedness for me is that it challenges me to consider your thoughts and feelings. To listen to your experience on how you look at life, and be open to your beliefs without judgment. Wow, I guess the world does not just revolve around me.

Love and Respect, Bruce M.

[sobertogod1]

"Tact is the unsaid part of what we think" A good principle to employee towards clearing the mind road.

[srfranci]

When you decide to take positive action and take charge of your life, you need to find ways and means of accomplishing small tasks that will lead you to the epitome of your journey. The various methods which you can employ to overcome the hurdles on your way may not always be easy solutions. Many times you may have to struggle to find the right manner to tackle a situation and move forward.

One of the best ways to achieve this is to have an open mind to solutions that other people may offer you. Don’t have a mindset that blocks all new ideas just because you have never tried them before. When the task is big and you are trying to achieve something meaningful in your life, you will need to take risks and leave no stone unturned in your path ahead.

We are closed and prejudiced about opinions that some people may have to offer to us. This happens when we are too snooty about what we want to do. It may also occur when we are unsure and scared of trying out new things. Either of the situations is bad because it does not allow you experience new thoughts and ideas. Living with staid old ideas that you have had since childhood hinders your growth as an individual and slowing your progress.

We tend to ignore comments that are made about certain aspects of life if we do not know much about them. Don’t block these thoughts and ideas from your mind but try and find out more about the suggestion or ideas that have been shared or those that you have heard. By keeping all your senses open and getting involved you can gain new experience which shall definitely lead you to becoming a more knowledgeable person who is more capable of achieving his dreams.

An even more difficult task is to identify when a solution comes your way. Many times these solution pop up at the most unexpected of moments and you wonder how you could have missed it. Some remark made by someone in some party may spark of a thought process in your own mind that may lead to the solution that you had been seeking for days.

Evaluating ideas and options objectively is a skill that you will have to train yourself in. There are certain people who will twist and turn facts to suit their own convenience but just because they do so these facts still continue to exist and have an effect on the actions that you take.

The whole idea is not to listen to the suggestions and sermons of every person that you meet on the road but to keep an open mind to the suggestions and comments that people make because somewhere in this whole sea of words, there is likely to be the pearl that will lead you to your goal!

Very interesting Bruce! This really made me think about how I look at life. Thanks for the opportunity to respond.