The Benefits of Being Open Minded

[RainbowFanGirl]

Most of us were brought up with a fixed set of beliefs and values, and it can be hard to see things from a point of view different from what we know and are familiar with. Some of us have trouble seeing things differently, and truly want to, but cannot because sometimes things new to what we know can be really strange and new to us. When we are approached with new ideas, many of us stand strongly by our beliefs on certain topics, making it harder to see different outlooks on it.

I would like to say I am very open-minded, and try to see both sides of the situation before I come up with a strong opinion. But most of us are hard to persuade, and keep loyal to a certain mindset that is hard to sway. Now, following and staying true to what you believe in are good qualities to have, and it shows that you are persistent and loyal, but having strong beliefs doesn't mean that you cannot express an open mind.

Being introduced to new topics can be a wonderful thing in many ways. Allowing myself to listen to different opinions and mindsets have been very beneficial for me, and may be beneficial to you, too.

Honesty

Being able to admit you are wrong is one of the greatest strengths you can have. With an open minded approach on topics, admitting you are wrong allows you to step into someone else's shoes to see things from another perspective. Being open minded is admitting that you do not know everything, and most of us do. not This understanding of different views and admitting to our flaws can allow us to become much more honest person, and honesty can be very important.

Experience

Opening our mind exposes us to new opportunities and experiences that we would never dream of being apart of. It changes our outlook on life completely. Being exposed to new ideas does not necessarily mean that you will change your onions, but it gives you the option to do so, which can be a good thing.

Mistakes

Mistakes are good usually, and they allow us to learn from them and to get better or be better in general. When you open your mind up to new things, you get to see things from a different perspective, allowing you potentially to see mistakes that you have possibly have made, and you will be able to learn from them. Building experience can strengthen you, and help you recognize potential mistakes you have made, and you may make more mistakes, but that is the beauty of it.
Building thicker skin
What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, right? Being proved wrong after having a strong sense of what you believe is right can help you be a much stronger individual.

Letting go

Losing control can actually be a good thing when wanting to have an open-minded viewpoint.You allow yourself to experience new ideas and thoughts as you challenge the beliefs you now have. It can be very exhilarating to look at the world through an open mind.

Gaining confidence

When you leave your mind open, you have a strong sense of oneself. You are not hindered by your own beliefs, nor you live by the beliefs of others. Therefore, you have the power to gain confidence as you learn more about the world around you. Open-mindedness help you take challenges head on as you learn and experience more in life.

Being vulnerable

One of the most terrifying but great things about seeing the world through an open mind is allowing yourself to be vulnerable. In agreeing to have an open-minded view of the world, you are admitting, like honesty, that you do not know everything and that there are possibilities you may not have considered thinking about. This vulnerability can be both scary and liberating.
***
For some people, being open minded can come as effortlessly as breathing. For others, it can be difficult to break free from what you were taught. These tips are for someone who has difficult approaching things with an open mind. It can be a wonderful thing, really. Just put your mind to it.

[Klara-Hitler]

good. but nowadays open minded is used for anyone who accepts certain values he/she was taught as a child in the school and by TV and closed minded is used to bash anyone who even criticize those values and if he doesn't accept them he'll be demonized.

People always abuse terms.

The truth is open mindedness comes with higher intelligence and education and having higher intelligence is the father of critical thinking.

And a critical mind doesn't accept anything until they're proven with facts.

and it's funny closed minded is used to shut up any criticizing against a set of values nowadays, or in other words closed minded is very likely to be used for true open minded people.

[Illusive_Man]

“I consider that a man's brain originally is like a little empty attic, and you have to stock it with such furniture as you choose. A fool takes in all the lumber of every sort that he comes across, so that the knowledge which might be useful to him gets crowded out, or at best is jumbled up with a lot of other things, so that he has a difficulty in laying his hands upon it. Now the skillful workman is very careful indeed as to what he takes into his brain-attic. He will have nothing but the tools which may help him in doing his work, but of these he has a large assortment, and all in the most perfect order. It is a mistake to think that that little room has elastic walls and can distend to any extent. Depend upon it there comes a time when for every addition of knowledge you forget something that you knew before. It is of the highest importance, therefore, not to have useless facts elbowing out the useful ones.

(A Study in Scarlet)”

― Arthur Conan Doyle

[Klara-Hitler]

@Illusive_Man that is for mind management and rational thinking. managing what is inside and keeping an open door for new thoughts. Those useless facts are beliefs. believing in anything that makes thoughts crowded about something and makes it harder to welcome new ones.

open mindedness includes this ability. what I said was about the usage of the term. that the same people who were/are used to make things crowded in that little attic are given toy ponies and unicorns to fill their attics with instead of everything else that they used to fill their minds with 100 years ago.

This is not open mindedness. It is a just another form of closed mindedness. and whether you force people to fill their attic with shit, guns, or toy unicorns you are the same.

True lack of believing and rational thinking is the beginning of having an open mind.

[Illusive_Man]

People speak as if "open mindness" is a good thing in any situation. I think it's good for people to be closed minded about certain things when it comes to integrity and values.

Closed mindness is not necessarily a bad thing as much as society tells people otherwise.

[Klara-Hitler]

@Illusive_Man open mindedness is the ability to open the door of that attic whenever you want and/or is needed. It's never a bad thing to have control over your mind.

the bad thing is filling it with wrong values whether they are voodoo toys or toy unicorns and close it and be taught to be scared to open it. or leave it open for anything to come in and be accepted.

[Illusive_Man]

Maybe we should call it having a flexible mind instead eh?
Open/Closed sounds too absolute.

[Klara-Hitler]

@Illusive_Man yah. open mind never means to be accepting. it means controlling.

[RainbowFanGirl]

What do you mean? How is it controlling? :p

[Klara-Hitler]

I said in the comments above.

[RainbowFanGirl]

K... sorry for even writing this.

[Klara-Hitler]

why sorry? the explanation is clear in above if I wanted to say it would be repetitive.

[RainbowFanGirl]

I don't know, and I agree with what you said in the comments. :)

[Klara-Hitler]

okay. just don't be sorry for commenting or asking things it's not a big deal.

[RainbowFanGirl]

Okay, thank you.

[Klara-Hitler]

you're welcome.

[Prof_Don]

I agree. Being open minded to me, means being able to see both sides of a situation or subject, instead of jumping to a conclusion for any reason.

Some of these common reasonings closed minded people use are:

"I was raised this way"
"Why change something that is already working?"
"My parents did X this way and I'm looking suit "

-----

Of course being TOO liberal is just as bad. Having SOME values and principles in life to proverbially stand on, prevents said person from flailing around and accepting EVERY proposed change in society that comes around.

P. S. @Jersey1 see I'm a complete liberal hippie! Lol

[RainbowFanGirl]

Yeah. You don't have to be a liberal to be open minded.

[Prof_Don]

That's the stereotype! Liberal = open minded, Conservative = traditionalist, doesn't like change

[TheDevilInside]

I don't think having an open mind is something you can just decide to do. You can't just say "from now on, I'll be mote open-minded". It's not that easy.

I think open mindedness is a product of character growth and experience. The more you realise how different people are, the more likely you would be willing to accept the fact that not everyone lives by your morals and values but those who don't are still people too.

The only thing you can say or make yourself do in order to slowly become more open minded is to remind yoirself to not judge people so quickly because hey, you don't know their complete life stories. You can remind yourself to always give people who live their lives not according to your values the benefit of the doubt.

That should be a practice you can do to become a more open minded individual. Also, travel. See the world. Meet different people and have deep meaningful conversations with them.

[Remonster]

Good points!

[RainbowFanGirl]

That's basically what I was saying you should do. :)

[Part6fam]

I loved this response!!

[Longblackveil]

Hey Albert, what do you have to say about this take?

brightdrops.com/.../...hemeasureofintelligence.jpg

Thanks Al! I agree!

[RainbowFanGirl]

:D Albert! Lol.

[Anonymous]

I think people don't really understand how related having an open mind and critical mind are. Most often people with a closed mind haven't the ability to 1) accept their wrong 2) be vulnerable 3) understand what makes something right vs tradition and the list can go on.
Back to the critical thinking point, the people with the locks on their mind (in my life) are truly unable to think critically. And they're genuinely incapable of using reason to evaluate a situation or idea. They just fall back on previous 'knowledge' and that is the sole defense even if it's been proven wrong.
That being said, higher education isn't needed to think critically or have an open mind.

[ThisDudeHere]

I have a personal balance of open mindedness. I'm ok with people of different beliefs, colors, nationalities, sexual orientations and what not UNTIL they start bothering me with their crap. Then I'm not tolerant anymore.

Also I'm ok with people doing whatever they like during sex BUT I myself would be averse to certain things - mainly kissing after oral or anal (one me). Again, nothing against people who do it but for me it would be disgusting.

[RainbowFanGirl]

ohhh, I'm sure nobody likes that.

[ThisDudeHere]

Trust me there are plenty of people who like that. I was once labeled as immature and narrowminded for not being open to the idea of having something go up my arse or tasting my own semen from a woman's mouth.

Again, nothing against people who do it but I find it disgusting.

[aniemist]

I agree with you, I think open mindedness is important, I try to be as open minded as possible, I have my opinions but I always try to understand where people are coming from as well. Admitting you are wrong, being honest, letting yourself be vulnerable there are scary things to do for many people. This fear is a hard thing to overcome for anybody, it took me a while myself.

Good post :)

[RainbowFanGirl]

Wow thank you for the compliment. :)

[Remonster]

"Being able to admit you are wrong is one of the greatest strengths you can have" Absolutely! Sadly, too many people stick to their guns even when they're proven wrong. Either because out of pride or simply because they think it makes them strong. I personally think it's weak.

[RainbowFanGirl]

Exactly! I hate when people try to act like they're always right.

[lusciousB]

Me too!

[rAiNbOwTeRdZ]

I have a friend who is VERY open-minded. I'm open-minded, but like you, always see both sides of the situation. As for her, she listens to the first thing she hears and sticks with it. Usually, when someone says their opinion of a movie, book, etc., she'll state her opinion (which is usually the opposite), and make it sound like it's a fact. It can be annoying, but arguing against it is just pointless.

[RainbowFanGirl]

Glad you liked it. :)

[tenofthepeaks]

then she's not truly open-minded.

[rAiNbOwTeRdZ]

@RainbowFanGirl It was beautiful.

[rAiNbOwTeRdZ]

@tenofthespeaks Possibly.

[RainbowFanGirl]

:) :)

[BodyBuildingMonster]

i have to say ur words seems resonable and gr8 ,
there is just one thing i need to add if i may ; being openminded is not related to sexuality. i am saying that cuz it seems to many people that being openminded is to to be open to have sex , and that is NOT TRUE!!
thats all
thnx

[RainbowFanGirl]

Sex in general? No I realize that. Being open minded could just be that you're willing to ride the roller coaster at the local amusement park. I know.

[BodyBuildingMonster]

yea i know that u understand my point. im just trying to make it clear to the readers

[RainbowFanGirl]

Oh, I got it.

[inamorata]

Also important to remember...
static2.quoteswave.com/.../...eep-an-open-mind.jpg

[RainbowFanGirl]

Yeah haha. So true.

[NateInAk]

Not having a set of values you generally adhere to is not being open minded or enlightened.
Running around inside a gray fog is not enlightenment.
That said, you should always be able to look at all sides of an issue.

[RainbowFanGirl]

Yep, basically what I was saying.

[TheEroticJester]

i agree with all of this, and personally have found it liberating. However, society will not be happy with it, they have set class, race, gender etc roles that equally cripple EVERY subset by denying them freedom.

[RainbowFanGirl]

Thank you

[teaddicted]

im the most open minded person in my group and it's kinda hard to accept when every one else around you don't even wanna try to understand what you are explaining because they stick to their own opinions and can't see that things can be different.

[RainbowFanGirl]

That's true.

[lusciousB]

People say I lack confidence because I look down when I'm walking somewhere but I'm just trying watch out so as to not to step on any bugs. :)

[RainbowFanGirl]

Lol, haha. :)

[lusciousB]

It's true though.

[RainbowFanGirl]

Yeah, it is.

[lusciousB]

Lol, how would you know? :)

[RainbowFanGirl]

I dunno lol. XD

[Jersey1]

Open Minded today means to be Liberial. If you think differntly than a Liberial, the liberials will say that you are "closed minded". Just more liberial BS.

[Prof_Don]

Conservative views aren't very plans minded; conservative views seem to be focused on old fashion, aka the past

[RainbowFanGirl]

This doesn't have anything to do with liberals. 😐

[Jersey1]

Lol, even if it was old fashioned, it works. Liberials always like to think they are somehow ahead of others when they are simply going in another direction, often times which is the wrong direction.

[tenofthepeaks]

erm... no. it's about accepting the validity in any point.

[Jersey1]

Not from my experience, you either say as they say or you are closed minded.

[Longblackveil]

This is pretty much correct, I don't see how any one could argue against this point. If you disagree your just close minded lol

[Longblackveil]

@Prof_Don

I don't really see how views can be open minded at all. No view is open minded all by itself.

Even if they COULD be, how does whether it's an old view or a new view determine such a thing?

[Jersey1]

I agree @longblackveil

[RainbowFanGirl]

I wasn't even talking about views.

[CityBoy773]

Love it and everything with it!
Can I steal this to give to a couple people I know? Seriously, they need it.

[RainbowFanGirl]

I guess haha

[MysteriousFlower]

I think it is good to be unbiased which comes from being open-minded. Experience is a major factor into this.

[RainbowFanGirl]

Yes, it is.

[Riggers]

Open Mindedness On GAG ? Surely Not ?

*Queue the Arrogant, Insensitive Bigots*

... Spoke to soon xD.

[RainbowFanGirl]

Bahaha. True.

[GirlScoutsRevenge]

Just remember, if you open your mind too much your brain might fall out.

[RainbowFanGirl]

Totally.

[lemonlimetime]

I wish I could say I was open minded. Cool take though

[RainbowFanGirl]

Thanks. :)

[Unit1]

I am open minded BUT silent! I do not attract attention.

On the internet I remain invulnerable >:P so that's better for me.

[RainbowFanGirl]

Haha, that's good.