Comments on: The Open Mind Test Part 4 – Conclusions, Comments, and a Challenge

By: Eric Watermolen

Eric Watermolen — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 17:48:34 +0000

Annabel, that is a great mind opening story. How surprising that must have been.

It sounds so peaceful to sit by a creek and write. I often go to a local park to sit and think, and ideas just bubble in slowly. It’s a nice experience.

By: Eric Watermolen

Eric Watermolen — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 17:44:45 +0000

I’m so happy you enjoyed the series. It’s funny I had almost forgotten about that 2nd grade experience until I started writing the series. Then it came screaming back to the front of my mind as one of my first mind opening experiences.

By: Wendy - Quest for "40 & Fabulous"

Wendy - Quest for "40 & Fabulous" — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 16:32:24 +0000

Great read! I’m so glad I happened upon your blog today… this was a great series and some of the responses were just as thought-provoking. As much as I knew how I felt about your second and third theories and thought they were very interesting, “an open minded 2nd grader” has really impacted me!

Thank you for writing on this great subject!

By: The Open Mind Test – Part 3: Our Purpose in Life — Eden Journal

The Open Mind Test – Part 3: Our Purpose in Life — Eden Journal — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 16:05:38 +0000

[...] Other posts in this series. The Open Mind Test – Part 1: An open minded 2nd grader The Open Mind Test – Part 2: A Great Teacher, A Little Philosophy, and A Whole Lot of Love The Open Mind Test – Part 3: Our purpose in life The Open Mind Test – Part 4: Conclusions, Comments, and a Challenge [...]

By: Annabel Candy, Get In the Hot Spot

Annabel Candy, Get In the Hot Spot — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 11:59:12 +0000

I think I’m so open minded and love it when I discover I’m not. One of the great things about travel is having your prejudices overturned. But you don’t need to go far for that to happen.

Only this morning I was down at the creek writing and observed a rough looking skin-head man walking his mean looking Alsatian dog. I was surprised to see ‘him’ later wading in the creek in a bikini! Nice one lady, you got me reassessing my world so thanks. And thanks too for writing these posts. Thought-provoking stuff!

By: Jon| Adventures of The Fearless

Jon| Adventures of The Fearless — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 03:27:13 +0000

I like your writing style Eric, and I do feel you have a open mind. A very enjoyable read. It’s good to allow room for questions and be ok with not knowing things.

By: Eric Watermolen

Eric Watermolen — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:32:21 +0000

Don’t you just love circular logic. An open minded person is open to the possibility that they may not be open minded.

Being able to get past prejudice can be a daunting challenge. It seems to surround us daily. We all have strong opinions of our likes and dislikes. As such, everyone is just like us, we all have strong opinions. Meaning we are all the same in this respect. With an open mind you can view others opinions and understand the validity from their perspective, while also viewing the other possibilities from other perspectives.

By: Eric Watermolen

Eric Watermolen — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:22:14 +0000

Patty, I’m really diggin’ your insights! Great point on getting your buttons pushed. If you are feeling offended, it’s likely you are not seeing their point of view. You may disagree with their views, but with a little understanding and an open mind, you can see that their views are valid to them. The approach you describe is such a good way to go through life. In a book I read recently, it had a good phrase that parallels your thoughts. “Everyone is exactly the way they are suppose to be.” Meaning that, at any given time, a person is experiencing life as they are meant to, learning their own lessons, and progressing on their own path.

By: Ideas With A Kick

Ideas With A Kick — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 08:54:00 +0000

I think I have an open mind. Or maybe I’m just not open about the fact that I don’t have an open mind

There is a lot of prejudice all around that can put pressure on us to not see things as they are, but as we are told by others that they are. Being able to surpass this is something I for one really appreciate.

Eduard
Ideas With A Kick´s last blog ..How do I look? Like everybody else

By: Patty @ Why Not Start Now?

Patty @ Why Not Start Now? — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 00:43:57 +0000

Hi Eric – I did enjoy this series. Kudos to you for thinking it up! It gave us a rare chance to look at deep questions that don’t have easy answers, and that don’t get asked often enough. The one thing I would say about open-mindedness is to be aware of when something or someone pushes your buttons, because that’s probably a sign that you’ve moved slightly away from open-mindedness. This has been a tremendous help to me during recent years, making me much more accepting and less judgmental. Not that I don’t get my buttons pushed; I do, but I have a better way through it now. Oh, and I’ve learned that button pushing can happen in subtle ways that seem insignificant at first, as in when we say, “I’ve never understood why people would act like_____.” For me, that just presents another opportunity to practice empathy and open-mindedness.
Patty @ Why Not Start Now?´s last blog ..False Evidence Appearing Real: The Movie