Open mind

There’s an old saying that I have heard over the years, and it goes like this: “Minds are like parachutes. To work, they need to be open.” I have always tried to remind myself of this little tidbit over the years when I come across new information. We have been living in the Information Age for a while now and often find ourselves being introduced to new information.

Although we frequently hear it said that “Knowledge is power,” it can also be overwhelming and tricky to decipher. The hardest part is knowing what needs our attention and what doesn’t, which is difficult when information is being forced upon us from all angles. It helps to prioritize and to know exactly what it is you’re looking for. It’s also important to exercise good judgement and critical thinking. When I research things, I find points from both sides of the coin and facts that support more than one side of every story. In my experience as a consumer of information, I’ve learned that the two most powerful strategies we have are keeping an open mind and trusting our intuition.

When you come across facts that contradict themselves or find evidence that fits more than one puzzle, you really have to rely on what you resonate with. Just because information is something you haven’t heard before doesn’t mean it’s false.

Often when we hear information that is beyond our education or experience, we tend to dismiss it and deny its existence. We don’t always allow space for things we haven’t learned or been exposed to. When we close our minds to new ideas we may miss very relevant or helpful information. The mind is such a powerful tool. We can use it to help us—or to shut out opportunities.

There is much we simply do not know. It appears to be impossible to learn everything we need to in our culture and education. Especially with technology and science advancing so quickly. As things progress and advance, we learn things we didn’t know before and many times we prove the things we thought were true actually aren’t. So if you are stubborn with your facts, knowledge, and information, you may very well be misinforming yourself.

Our brains are designed to download information into our subconscious. So it can be very difficult to learn and unlearn new things. However, when you can keep an open mind when you come across information that changes or challenges what you know (before your first instinct kicks in to deny or argue against it), you allow room for more understanding.

I find myself exposed to quite a bit of new information every day. It does challenge what I know so far in this game, but if I don’t approach it with an open mind, I miss out on newer and better things on the horizon. Not all new things are necessarily better for us, but without being open to weighing the options, we miss out altogether on ideas that may help us better our lives.

I find often when browsing social media that it seems we are quick to argue with another rather than first fully listen. Then there may be an opportunity to learn or look further into it. Once we have given respectful attention to a subject that may be important for us, we can share our perspective and understanding. I feel if we can approach our conversations and interactions with an open mind, we can come to understand one another better. We may not always agree on every subject, but you can allow love and growth in.

Sharing is caring. Just because you have been introduced to information you haven’t encountered before does not make it right or wrong. The first step is discovering a bit more. Perhaps the information is something you know very little about. Or maybe there have been better advancements and understandings since you’ve studied and learned it. It could even be a lack of experience from your own perspective. No matter the reason, it may be helpful to remember that none of us know it all.

Since life is in constant motion and always changing, our information and technology will most likely change as well. I think it’s our human nature to be innovative and strive for better results and findings. For us to move forward and progress as well, the first step is opening our minds!