Expanding an ideal mind set

Expanding in an ideal mindset

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Expanding an ideal mindset

An ideal mindset is a superior mental disposition that predetermines an individual’s responses to and interpretation of contexts. It also refers to a superior habit or inclination (Dweck, 2012). An individual’s mindset is shaped by experiences, and with the countless information, data, and knowledge available, the capacity of our brains has been expanded widely. One way of expanding an ideal mindset is by setting clear objectives of what one wants to achieve within a specific period such as one week or a month. Most people fail to achieve their goals by failing to set clear goals and reviewing them every day. Writing down the goals serve as a lens through which an individual is able to filter the countless information that one is bombarded with and prioritize. With the multiple sources of information that is currently available, many people are at the mercy of the information sources regarding what they need to know. Most people are fascinated with the lives of celebrities and yet they do not work in the entertainment industry. Suing social media platforms, people waste their important time by interacting and “following” these celebrities, but this information is not necessary. By reviewing the goals, one is able to know what they could have done differently. The objective of reviewing goals is to increase motivation and avoid disruptions, while ensuring a learning loop. The human brain can incorporate countless information and by learning a bit daily one is able to accumulate numerous abilities over tome.

Setting priorities is also another way of expanding an ideal mindset. I have learned through experience that few things in life matter and they cause the other effects. Failure to prioritize means that we will not be able to dedicate resources to important things in life. Prioritizing is so a key element in time management. The ability to dedicate our time to the most important things first may be the difference between success and failure in our professional and personal lives. According to the consulting firm McKinsey, 80 percent of effects are caused by 20 percent, which implies it is important to focus on the 20 percent (Dweck, 2012). The company trains its employees to obtain the most important information on these 20 percent. In life, most people focus on the 80 percent, and ignore the 20 percent that causes the 20 percent.

Beating enemies such as watching excessive television and expanding a lot of time using the internet is another strategy of expanding an ideal mindset. Most people suffer from the negative effects of spending too much time on mass media platforms, which has negative effects on the brain. It makes the brain to be visual, unreflective, and passive recipient of data. It is a problem faced by many people are currently facing due to the use of smartphones to access the internet. The human brain is composed of millions of neurons that are linked to other neurons. Any undertaking in life activates certain networks of neurons. Watching television leads to the firing of many neurons at the same times. Excessive watching of television leads to the firing of many neurons at the same time, which implies that the connections between these neutrons become strong. This leads automatic-like responses. Heavy watching of television lead to non-reflective and passive thinking, which is the opposite of what must do in order to expand an ideal mindset. Furthermore, the use of the internet to search even the simplest of information has negatively affected the ability of out brains to think actively. Search engines such as Google have made it easier to access information, people currently are even afraid to think about simple solutions, and they have to search the internet.

Individuals seeking to expand their ideal mindset belief that intelligence can be nurtured. The brain is like a muscle that can be trained to improve. One way of training the mind to improve is by embracing challenges. We often shy way from challenges because of the fear of failure and this impedes the growth of our mindset (Allen, 2014). Additionally, setbacks and obstacles are discouraging in nature and leads to most people to give up. However, such an approach is defeatist in nature because we deny ourselves the ability to learn from the setbacks. People who seek to expand their ideal mindsets do not tie their self-image to their successes (Wegerif, 2010). This is a significant challenge because setback often affects our self-image and overcoming them is not easy. Failures lead to low confidence and negative self-esteem and it not managed well its affects how we see others and ourselves. To overcome this, one must view failures as an opportunity to learn and avoid the same mistakes in the future. To overcome the negative effects of failure, effort must be exerted, and seen as necessary in the acquisition of important skills to facilitate growth.

Negative feedback and criticism are sources of important information, but many individual see them as unnecessary and personal and should be avoided. This does not mean that all negative feedback should be integrated and not anything should not be taken personally. A person seeking to expand his/her ideal mindset should understand that they are capable of changing and improving; therefore, they should not perceive negative feedback as direct attacks, but about their present capabilities.

Another reacted factors that impedes the expansion of an ideal mindset is how we view the success of others. For many people, the success of others is viewed as intimidating or with jealously, but it should be perceived as a source of information and inspiration. We can learn from the success stories of leading entrepreneurs and apply them to our situation. For individual seeking to expand their ideal mindset, success should not be perceived as a zero-sum game (Allen, 2014). The outcomes of seeing success as a source of inspiration is higher levels of achievement, which in turn leads to a positive feedback loop that encourages them to continue learning and improving.

Stress and anxiety are the other two factors that limit the expansion of an ideal mindset, which demands that they should be kept under control. Stress is unavoidable in life, it is even positive, but excessive and continuous stress is harmful to the expansion of an ideal mindset because it diminishes our attention and denies us the ability to see the big picture. Continuous stress diverts important mental energy that could have been used in learning new skills and complex thinking to the overcoming the stress. When faced with a stressful situation, our ability to think clearly is affected. To expand our ideal mindset, we should identify our sources of stress and anxiety and eliminate them.

Adopting a scientific mindset is also another way of expanding an ideal mindset. Scientists handle large amounts of data in the most efficient way possible by defining a hypothesis and then searching for information tat supports or refute the hypothesis. This does not imply that we become scientist and conduct studies on everything, but to keenly observe a phenomena, behavior or a challenge and look for information to understand it further. By doing so, we are able to avoid unnecessary assumptions associated with unstructured studies. Adopting a scientific mindset is critical in the development of a comprehensive worldview (Wegerif, 2010). This is a mental model of reality about us, systems of beliefs, the world, and life in general. A scientific mindset allows us to understand our purpose in life, the reason of our existence, objectives, values, and priorities (Good, 2005). By understanding these facts, we are able to make important decisions regarding how we use our time and other resources.

Expanding our social circle and connecting with like-minded individuals also offers opportunities of expanding an ideal mindset. Having friends whose goals are contrary to ours and resent our success restricts the expansion of an ideal mindset and it is important to be friends with individuals who are doing great things with their lives (Thrivelearning Institute Library, 2012). The significance of connecting with other people wit ideal mindsets and similar objectives in life cannot be underestimated. From my personal experience, having a circle of friends whom you share the same objectives in life is important for the realization of an ideal mindset because you can share successes and failures and they can offer motivation during challenging times. In conclusion, it is clear that expanding an ideal mindset incorporates concepts from different disciplines, and it is vital in the current world where one has to filter multiple sources of information.

References

Allen, J. (2014). As a Man Thinketh. New York: Diamonds.

Dweck, C. S. (2012). Mindset. London: Robinson.

Good, R. (2005). Scientific and religious habits of mind: Irreconcilable tensions in the curriculum. New York [u.a: Lang.

Thrivelearning Institute Library. (2012). The E-Entrepreneur Success Mindset: Unearth the Minds of Successful Internet Entrepreneurs From Around the Planet! Denver: Midwest Journal Press.

Wegerif, R. (2010). Mind Expanding: Teaching for Thinking and Creativity in Primary Education. Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill International (UK) Ltd.