#325 Snippets of wisdom: How to have an open mindset.

EPISODE TRANSCRIPTION

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Agi Keramidas  0:00  
Hey. Welcome to personal development mastery podcast. And this is another snippets of wisdom episode where I select my favourite most insightful moments from previous episodes of the podcast. Today's snippet of wisdom comes from my conversation with Ryan Gottfredson, a mental success coats and cutting edge leadership trainer and author. I chose two short snippets from that conversation. The first one is about the difference between having an open mindset and the closed mindset. The second snippet is about the difference between a prevention mindset and the promotion mindset. I hope this snippet is as insightful for you as it was for me.

Ryan Gottfredson  0:53  
We have a closed mindset, we're closed the ideas and suggestions of others. When we have an open mindset, we're open to others ideas and suggestions and we're willing to take them seriously. Now, having an open mindset doesn't mean that we go with whatever other people say, we can always have a stiff back. But having an open mindset means that we have a soft front, we're willing to take in ideas from others. Now, then that leads to the question, What leads somebody to have a closed mindset? And and what leads us to have a closed mindset is we believe that what we know is right. And when we believe that what we know is right, we want to be seen as being right. And so to use an analogy, you see if we compare our mind to a bucket, and and if we think that we know everything, right, we know that we are right, then our bucket is full, what happens when we pour water into the into a full bucket? Well, it just goes off the side, we're not able to absorb it. Yeah. And so that's what's going on, when we have a closed mindset, we've got a full bucket, and we're just not willing to take in ideas from other people. When we have an open mindset, we leave room for the possibility that we can be wrong. And when we leave room to the possibility to be wrong, what we're doing with our bucket is the water level just isn't to capacity. And this allows us to take in information. So it's those with the closed mindset there primarily focus is on being seen as being right, those with an open mindset, have a primary focus on thinking optimally and finding truth. And the only way you're going to want to seek after truth is if you believe that you can be wrong, right? So there is a little bit of an ego element that's involved in this because we want to be seen as being right that that's something we all value. And sometimes that that ego barrier, and also the blind spot barrier that we don't know at all is what prevents us from having more of an open mindset. And so when I hear people like you say, and don't get me wrong, I've had I've had a closed mindset myself, right? Is, it's really easy for people, I'm going to say like us who we are learners, we probably consider ourselves selves, experts on things, we probably think that we know more about certain things than other people know about them, right? Yes. And so when we have that perspective, we just need to be sensitive to that, right. Because if we if if we see ourselves as the expert, and we don't rein that in, we're going to be quick to dismiss the ideas and suggestions of others. And so part of it is we've we've got to be willing to let go of our identity as an expert, and be willing to say, well, I know a lot. The bucket is really big, like the potential, I may have a lot of water in my bucket, but the bucket is really big. And if we can tell ourselves that story allows us to be a little bit more open. So the next set is the difference between a prevention mindset and a promotion mindset. When we have a prevention mindset, our primary focus is on not losing. When we have a promotion mindset, our primary focus is on winning and gains. So to explain the difference between the two, I want us to imagine two ship captains and they're both in the middle of the ocean. One has a prevention mindset and one has a promotion mindset. Now the one with a prevention mindset, that ship captains number one focus is going to be on not sinking. They don't want any problems to occur. They don't want to take any risks. They don't want to rock the boat because they don't want to end up in the boat. bottom of the ocean, the person with the promotion mindset, it's not that they're not concerned about sinking because they are. But their number one focus is on getting to a destination. Now, when we have these different focus, one is not sinking one is getting to a destination, what happens when a storm comes on the horizon? Or when a storm comes on the horizon, the person with the prevention mindset is going to run for safety. Go back to a harbour. But here's the thing about well, I guess, let me jump forward. The person who has a promotion mindset when they see the storm on the horizon, they're going to ask the question, does that storm between me and my destination, and if it is, that individual will prepare for the challenge, they'll batten down the hatches, they'll become willing to take the risk and brave the storm because they know that that's the only way to get where they want to go. So at the end of the day, the difference between these two people is those with the prevention mindset end up in a destination, they that they didn't proactively decide. It's only those with the promotion mindset that are that are able to end up at a destination of their own proactive design. And so that's the huge difference is when and so in order for us to have this promotion mindset, we've got to have a clear destination, a clear purpose clear goals, because when we don't have those, we will take on the default, which is this prevention mindset, which largely revolves around avoiding problems and playing it safe. But that just generally doesn't lead to success.

Agi Keramidas  6:42  
Thank you for tuning in, you can listen to the full conversation in episode four, the link is in the shownotes. your ongoing support as my listener means the world to me, and I value your input in shaping the show's future. That's why I'm extending a special invitation to 10. Listeners like you to join me for a 30 minute zoom call and discuss your podcast experience. Your insights will play a vital role in making the show even more tailored to your needs and serve you better and to express my gratitude, I will gift you a copy of my first book which is ready but not yet published. So you will be one of the very first people to read it. Don't miss out on this opportunity to connect with me exchange insights and read my book before it's available publicly. Click the link in the show notes to arrange our call or email me at Aggie at Agi keramidas.com. I appreciate the opportunity to have this more personal communication with you and I will be looking forward to speaking with you.

Agi Keramidas  8:02  
Until then, stand out don't fit in.