By Wyeth Heilman
I believe that keeping an open mind is the best way to become more knowledgeable. As Frank Zappa once said, “A mind is like a parachute. It doesn’t work if it isn’t open,” and just like a closed parachute, a closed mind can lead to an incomplete life. Keeping an open mind is a way to get a clearer and wiser picture of any subject. Studies have shown that someone with a growth mindset views intelligence, abilities, and talents as learnable through effort. On the other hand, someone with a fixed mindset views those same traits as unchangeable over time, which is limiting. Let me finish with a simple example: I hold up a coin, and right now, I see heads, and you see tails; separately, we only see half the picture. However, together we’ve got a clearer understanding of reality. If you can see the world from your perspective, and also be open to the perspective of others, you will be wiser for it.
