Thinking Without Limits: A World of New Possibilities
We have lost the true art of developing our thinking. Yet, our brains have thousands of thoughts each day. Our minds are constantly thinking. Surely then, we should spend more time, thinking about our thinking. As after all, if you can change your thoughts, you can change your life. If we want to live life to the fullest, then care for your thoughts as if they are your most prized possessions and think without limits…
Why Should We Think?
The 12-pound mass sitting between your shoulders is unquestionably an important part of you. The brain is the tangible place where the mind resides and is vital for life. But the mind, although not confined to the brain, has a tremendous amount of power and is vital for a high-quality life. It is where the magic happens. Thoughts, perception, emotion, determination, memory, imagination all take place in the mind.
Our brains get a lot of attention, from making sure it gets vitamins and food, to sleep and fresh air. But do we pay enough attention to our minds, and more importantly our thinking?
Our minds are filled with thoughts every second and every minute of every day. In fact, we have thousands and thousands of thoughts each day and it’s probably the thing we do most often. The National Science Foundation in a 2005 study found that the average person had 80% negative thoughts and a staggering 95% were exactly the same repetitive thoughts as the day before. This goes to show how our thinking stems from habits and we have fallen into some bad ones; our mental models are not working for us.
Those who don't make the most of their mind, ignore its enormous potential. Our minds can deliver magic and give us the life we want. Therefore, mind management is the essence of life management. We are therefore seemingly unaware of the true power of our minds. They have so much potential we can harness.
Thoughts are vital, as if they are living things like little bundles of energy. Most don't give any time to think about the nature of their thoughts and yet the quality of your thinking determines your life. We can change this, we can think without limits.
Step 1: Thinking Differently:
Our outer world reflects the state of our inner world. We interpret and process a multitude of experiences and interactions. Our circumstances of life become thoughts, and we need to be careful to make the most of this. By controlling the thoughts that we think, we can respond in the right way and can control our destiny.
Our bad and negative thinking compounds as thoughts repeat day to day. This can create a spiralling effect. If we think differently, think about what is in front of us and are conscious of what we are thinking, we can change this. We need to update, challenge, and evolve our mental models. To do this we should think about our views and assumptions that define our world view.
How, why and even the fact that we think does not get talked about, or not to the extent it should. Thinking is a fundamental thing we all do that impacts all areas of our life. This consciousness of our thoughts is where it starts.
We often tend to think and make decisions based on what we know and familiar things, this is partly due to the confirmation bias we view the world with. But we can challenge this. By being, creative and using our imagination and thoughts we can view the general consensus differently. New perspectives provide new ideas and alternative ways of living. These allow us to think beyond what we know. It helps us move from a one-dimensional view to a multi-dimensional one giving us an alternative angle.
Step 2: Reflection
The key to thinking better is to view everything with an open mind. There is so much power in thinking, and we need to be open to the idea that this can have a really big and far-reaching impact on our life.
This is a process, there is no endpoint. It will take time. Progress is what we are aiming for and we can continually progress with our thinking. A fundamental is to constantly reflect, on what we think and how it has impacted us. This will allow you to see its true power. Like a muscle, our mind needs to be regularly exercised, and it will build up over time. This is the process the Infinity Thinking community is all about.
Every experience is a learning opportunity. Life is full of lessons. It is about a constant drive for improvement and learning through a curious angle and lens. This creates agile thinking helping us to overcome barriers and to look beyond.
Monks spend a lot of time contemplating where they are and where they are going and reflect on their deeper purpose and how they are living their lives. Just 10 minutes of focused reflection repeated can have a profound impact on our quality of life. We, like the monks, should think deeply and genuinely about improving the next day and this will start to compound into a better life.
Step 3: Being Bold
Once we have thought differently, obtained new perspectives and then reflected on this, we need to have the courage to take opportunities and achieve what we want from life. This means brave and bold decisions need to be made. This includes a willingness to take risks, to act innovatively, to change and adapt.
We are offered many lessons throughout life. It is up to us to take these opportunities and to grow, learn and advance. Spending time in our growth zone is where results will happen and you will begin to realise how thinking has contributed to this.
Final thoughts:
We have responsibility for our thinking. Winston Churchill said that 'the price of greatness is responsibility over each of your thoughts'. If we want to live life to the fullest, then care for your thoughts as if they are your most prized possessions. Let all of your thoughts break their bonds and let the mind transcend limitations. Let’s think without limits...
