The Benefits Of A Flexible Mind (and 5 Tips To Achieve It)
Why is psychological flexibility important?
We are in a world that is moving faster and more changing. Furthermore, this technological society makes us have the need to adapt to many new things constantly, and not only at work.
Gone are the times of stable work, always with the same partner, living your entire life in the same place… it is not that there were no changes before nor that now these standards are impossible, rather it is the speed of things.
Now we are shaken by more changes in less time, and the search for security in many cases has been relegated to knowing how to adapt to the new so as not to be left behind. Many times we cannot choose not to change, and If we have psychological flexibility we make it easier for ourselves to cope with changes adequately
Cognitive flexibility allows you to have flexible thinking, since you are able to see things from different angles, to assimilate the new information that comes to you and take another direction, to adapt better to new circumstances, to be more creative and decisive…
We are more inflexible or rigid than we think, our vision of the world is deeply rooted in what we already know or have been taught, to the point that we can affirm that each one lives in their own reality, since it is not the same reality for everyone.
This circumstance gives us room to decide; that is why many talk about “build your reality”, and they are somewhat right. It is important to know what your power is to live or see things differently, and this gives you the power to change them or face them as best suits you.
A rigid mind is one that leads you to act the same over and over again, and you may act like this out of conviction over and over again even if it doesn’t work for you. If you tend to be trapped in circumstances or feelings and always end up the same, I invite you to ask yourself if you have been trapped, if you need to open yourself to the possibility of seeing things from another perspective.
How do I know if I have fallen into the trap of a rigid mind?
The first thing is observe what things in our lives seem to not change or always have an unsatisfactory outcome We must keep in mind that you can have a rigid mind for certain aspects and for others a more flexible mind with more openness.
For example, you may think that you have to learn something new for your profession and feel able to adapt to this change, even seek it, and at the same time believe that no relationship will be the same as the one you had with that boy.
This last example may seem like an absolute and reasoned truth, but this belief can also be a prison that prevents you from enjoying love again. It is natural for you to think this.
Sometimes the difference makes it how this thought or belief evolves in you If it doesn’t evolve, it will be a trap that will put barriers up for you. You will see everything more negatively, because by believing that you will never find the happiness you had with that person again, you will be on the defensive, it will be difficult for you to have hope, you will constantly compare this new love with the one you already had and everything will confirm to you that it is not the same , your belief will be fulfilled and you will think that you are right.
If you have a flexible mind, you will give yourself room to see what this new relationship brings you, you will see “not the same” as an opportunity to be with someone different who makes you feel love in a different way. You will conclude that no relationship is the same and that even though you knew you would never have a relationship like the one you had again, in the end you have found a different love that can also make you very happy. And so will allow you to evolve and be happy again
This is just an example of how a flexible mind allows you to move forward and face life in a different way, not staying stuck, for example, in how things were and in the belief of how they should be. A flexible mind allows you to discover new paths.
Characteristics of a rigid mind
It is easy to detect if you have a rigid mind if you are entrenched in an opinion, if you think that everyone is wrong except you To know if you have fallen into this trap that makes you feel safe and embrace your beliefs, built by your experiences or your past history, I propose that you analyze: when was the last time you were able to change your mind?
A flexible mind is capable of modify a judgment about something when receiving new information that contradicts what was previously thought A flexible mind will be naturally able to assimilate this new knowledge or evidence and modify what it thinks without falling into defending itself tooth and nail against what contradicts its previous position. You will be able to learn, evolve and grow.
5 tips to work on having psychological flexibility
Keep these tips in mind to develop mental flexibility.
1. Here and now is where what is really important happens, where you have the opportunity to live
The past is history, learn from it, don’t live in it, and the future is yet to live. But if you do not live in the present you will not be able to live in the future, since you will never be present.
2. Learn from your mistakes
The guilt is not for you to keep, its intention is cause you to act differently next time Mistakes don’t talk about you, but how you deal with them does say a lot.
3. Get out of absolute thoughts, black/white, good/bad…
Embrace the nuances which means that there is not only one correct answer. Reality is full of details, approaches, points of view…
4. Dare to change, to explore new things…
Do what doesn’t suit you, get used to trying, enjoying learning remove the labels… Discover more about yourself, leave the limitations for rigid minds.
5. Connect with what is really of value to you
Giving everything so much importance can be overwhelming Don’t wait to receive a blow to fall into what is really important, health, family… Start living today!
