A paper I wrote for my communications class...
Open Mind
Reflecting on these questions and my thoughts, I’ve been able to renew my perspective on certain topics and to change it on some as well. Being open-minded is a key aspect of life and I believe everybody should strive to become more open-minded. I’ve learned to reflect on times where keeping an open mind has benefited my existence, positive and negative impacts of having an open mind, and how having an open mind can be dangerous at times. Throughout reading and writing about being open-minded with the help of others and myself, I truly believe I’ve learned to further control living life with an open mind.
When thinking of a time I’ve kept my mind open to new ideas and experiences, so many positive thoughts and memories come to mind. Yoga and meditation are some of the best experiences I’ve had from a time I’ve kept my mind open. I truly wouldn’t be as mindful as I consider myself to be without those things, and especially without opening my mind to try something new. I am very fortunate to have such an amazing friend in my life that was so considerate to me when I tried yoga and meditation for the first time. She truly made it an amazing experience that longed me to continue it. I then continued to and became much more mindful from these experiences. I learned how to listen to others better, control my thoughts, exercise my body and mind, and really to open my mind to other’s perspectives rather than only my thoughts and perspectives. What I mean by this is I’ve learned to truly listen to others instead of just believing what I’ve known my entire life and not questioning it. When in meditation, you learn to not think basically and that puts other things that have happened in life into perspective. Meditation truly has changed who I am today for the better and I’m forever grateful for that, and for having a friend that taught me this amazing experience. Without yoga and meditation, I wouldn’t be the healthy individual I am today either. Yoga and meditation helped me remain healthy both physically and mentally but also pushed me to be the healthiest version of myself I could. I listened to others, did research, and kept my mind open to the vegan lifestyle. Now, 5 months vegetarian and about a month vegan, I can say confidently and happily that I am truly becoming the healthiest version of myself. This all would not be possible without keeping my mind open to new ideas and experiences.
Keeping an open mind can bring various positive experiences into your life but can have negative implications as well. As previously explained, I’ve had lots of positive experiences throughout my life by keeping an open mind and continue to have these experiences now! I continue to learn new things, try things I’ve never thought about trying, and have changed my viewpoints on various subjects once learning something about it. All due to having an open mind. To keep an open mind is an important aspect that I think everyone should take into consideration during their lives, but they need to do it to a certain extent. What I mean by this is to limit how much you open your mind. You can indulge yourself in information all day, but what good is that to you if it isn’t true? It is a necessity to be able to find out whether the information you research is reliable or not. Whether it comes from a website, the news, or another individual. Once you do that, you should open your mind to whatever falls into the “real/reliable” category, take that information into account, and change your viewpoints accordingly. Another way keeping an open mind can have potential negatives is if the new things you are trying aren’t necessarily the best for your mental and physical wellbeing. Take into consideration whatever it is that you’re thinking about trying, think of its benefits, think of its short-term and long-term goals, and then make the decision whether to do it or not. Once you learn how to open your mind about something effectively, the negatives that happen are so minimal compared to the positive. If, and when negatives happen from opening your mind, all you can do is acknowledge it, accept it, and continue throughout your journey of life. Finally, continue to look forward to all the positives coming your way.
The quote, “You should keep your mind open, but not so much that your brain falls out.”, has various meanings and can mean different things to different people. Any quote can have different meanings though because we all experience life differently, that’s why I think quotes, in general, are so beautiful. Personally, this quote tells me to keep my perspective and understanding of the universe open to change but to acknowledge as well that you’ll never know everything and that is more than okay. When I first learned the power of growth and knowledge that I could continue to gain from having an open mind, I was beyond excited to continue learning. I stayed up later and later each night, researching more and more, and falling deep and deeper into this plethora of information I longed to know. It eventually became too much. Anytime I had a question about anything in my head I would look it up, read an article, book, website, etc.., and plunge further down this rabbit hole of knowledge that is truly never-ending and always growing. After a week straight of that, it became my priority. I stopped doing yoga and meditation every night like I had been and let my mind continue to fill with more knowledge. While I thought this was good, I realized this was terrible for my mind and mental health. After another week I had had enough. A phone call with my brother, who is overseas, opened my mind more, but healthily this time. He told me I needed to not get too much into the details of things. To not explain my philosophy, but to embody it. A quote he had found himself. I considered this immediately and accepted it was okay that I didn’t know everything about everything. That night instead of staying up till 4 a.m. researching various categories of information, I went back to my roots and what I knew was good for my wellbeing. That night, I did yoga, meditated, and journaled for around two hours. My mind was given a sense of clarity that I had lost in the previous weeks hidden under all the information I’d taken in and I then realized how important these things were to my mental health and overall wellbeing. I learned that I need to continue doing things that are most beneficial to my wellbeing, rather than spending that time indulging in, sometimes useless, information that will drive my mind crazy. My mind and body do so much for me, so I need to respect it and give back to it in things like yoga, meditation, and journaling. I learned that it is good to keep your mind open, but not to the point that your brain falls out.
An open mind can bring the average or even not-so-average person many things in life. It can cause positive, but sometimes negative effects within a person’s life. Additionally, it may cause someone to try something new that they will continue to do for their existence. It may also be dangerous at times if you keep your mind too open, so you need to learn how to control it while still being able to be open-minded. I know and can confidently say, having an open mind is truly a blessing and will benefit you in so many ways.