Have you ever had an encounter with a person who is so dogmatic about their ideas and belief thereby excluding every possible explanation or opinion that may contradict their understading of doing things.
For me that was recently. I had an outing yesterday where I wanted to pick up a file from a government office. Sadly, I could not get access to the file and I could not get it is because there is a mandatory delay for 3 weeks one has to undergo.
To me, that sounded strange but the turning point was when I asked why I have to wait for 3 weeks before I could pick up a file that is literally in their office or archive room, they said it is because that is the way things have been done.
Honestly, I frowned up this notion at first but when I got back home, I pondered a bit longer on how naive it was.
How the Incident reminded me of the book
The entire incident brings me back to the residual knowledge I gained from Jay Shetty first book Think Like A Monk. If there is one thing I cannot forget from reading Think Like a Monk is the lesson on staying open minded.
Jay spoke about how his time in the monastery helped him in keeping an open mind through the teachings from the monks. He likes to describe it as motivating factor for growth as a human being.
Being open minded is one thing but staying open minded is another. To be open minded, one has to stay positive to the possibility that there are multiple ways of doing things.
Like the popular saying goes:
There is more than one way to kill a rat.
If you can remain hung up on the notion that your way of doing something is the only way and it is absolutely right. That sets you up for struggle or worse stagnation. There is a reason nobody likes a know it all or someone who shows such trait.
Now, imagine if the person whom I met at the office understood the idea of being open minded, won't it be applicable to the 3 weeks delay?
But they choose to belief that the old way of doing things is the best and only way since that is how it has always been done. It is more like saying tradition will always stay the same way despite the human need for evolution and change.
I am not saying tradtions should be wiped off and forgotten or changed completely but I am saying at least we should entertain the open mindedness to the possible tweaks and upgrades that can help better the tradition instead of sticking to the old way of doing things.
Stay Open Minded
I have said it previous in this post that it is one thing to be open minded and it is another to stay open minded. It is not enough to say you are open minded but can you still stay opened minded when your beliefs and understanding of a certain thing has been questioned.
This is where the true test comes into play. Will you entertain the idea of change when it makes you uncomfortable. Well, this is what I feel the world of today is currently facing. people's understanding of doing things and belief system are being questioned, thereby making it uncomfortable for them.
Inasmuch as you try, the world is constantly changing and change is the only thing that is constant. It is okay if you do not embrace it at first but when you see the benefit, do not be adamant to adopt it.
I am @samostically, I love to talk and write about chess because I benefited a lot from playing chess and I love writing about chess.
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