The Most Difficult Mind to Change

I am right now in a program with a framework that goes against my deepest beliefs and habits. I’ve been familiar with this program for a long time, and I never engaged with the content they provide, believing the program would not benefit me. But all of my growth has come from looking at beliefs, ideas, and strategies with which I disagree. So, I engaged and opened up the opportunity to change what I believe.

Moving Towards That With Which You Disagree

If you disagree with a belief or an idea or a strategy, the fact that other people have found value in it is evidence that it might be useful. While the fact that other people have found something helpful is not proof positive that it will be helpful for you, it is enough that it should cause you take note. Most people avoid idea with which they disagree, seeking information that confirms what they already believe. Growth, however, comes from changing your mind.

If the ideas and beliefs and strategies you have now are capable of producing the results you want, you’d already be producing those results. If you want things to be different than they are now, you are the first thing that you need to change.

The more you are locked into what you already know and believe, the more you are locked in and limited to your present state. If you are unwilling to even look at ideas that you find challenging, you eliminate new ideas, new beliefs, new strategies—and the new choices you might have available to you.

Change Starts in the 8 inches Between Your Ears

Twice in as many weeks, I have encountered a strategy I find difficult. It’s a rather simple idea, and I believe it has value. But part of me continues to argue that it is not possible for me. The idea is that you carry two smartphones. The first phone is your main phone, and the first step is to eliminate all social apps and email from that phone (now you know why this is difficult). The second phone (or device) is for your social apps and your email. By removing these potential sources of distraction, you give yourself the gift of greater focus. You are also intentional about how you process your email and your use of social apps.

When confronted by this strategy, my mind immediately comes up with an exhaustive list of all the reasons my email must remain on my primary phone. Even though I would have another device with email a few feet away from me. It’s difficult to overstate the amount of power these devices have over our behavior—and our lives. And since I hate the idea, there are now two phones sitting next to me.

Growth requires change—and that change invariably comes with discomfort.

If you want to help other people change, there is no better training than learning to change yourself first. What beliefs, ideas, and strategies are you willing to give up and replace with new ones?