In the journey of creating a healthy mind, one of the most important aspects is the flexibility of your mind. A flexible mind is the one which is not stuck in certain patterns of thought but is open to change and ready to adopt new ways of thinking as and when the situation demands.
Most of our psychological suffering is nothing but a result of getting stuck to negative belief systems or thinking pattern. We see every other situation in our lives through those negative lenses and keep on creating misery for ourselves. The rigidity of mind has an important role to play when it comes to issues like depression, anxiety etc, which are a result of either ongoing rumination over past or overthinking about future, which in turn is a result of a rigid mind.
This rigid, black or white thinking, may help us to deal with certain everyday situations, but when it comes to quality of life, rigid thinking is not of much use because life is ever changing. We will always be put into a new set of situations and circumstance. And hence we need to have an open and flexible mindset to adapt the novelty that life keeps on putting us into.
One must observe that whenever we are happy and optimistic, our mindset becomes more inclusive and broader. And similarly when we are in fear out mindset shrinks and become narrower. This itself is a clear indication of the importance of flexible mindset to live a happy life.
Now the question comes, How to develop a flexible mind. Before diving into the practices of developing a flexible mind, we must understand that some people have natural temperament towards cognitive flexibility, while other needs to develop it through practice and persistence.
Here are four ways to enhancing your cognitive flexibility:
- Change Your Context: Whenever you are getting stuck into your habitual thinking patterns, go for a vacation, go for a small walk, or take a coffee break. Basically, do something to change the context or the environment in which you feel stuck.
- Try Something New: Join a dance class; Learn a new language; Cook a new recipe. Keep on trying some novel and stimulating activity. This would keep your mindset open to change and make it easier for you to adapt to a new situation, which in turn would help you to become a better problem solver. Remember, novelty is essential for mental flexibility.
- Question your thoughts: It’s important to remain aware of what goes on in your mind. Don’t get locked into a particular way of thinking. You must learn to let go of dysfunctional thought patterns that don’t serve you and substitute with more functional and productive ones.
- Plan To Be Spontaneous: Don’t go very rigid with the structure of your day. Change the order of your day sometimes; Make sudden plans; Occasionally take a new route; Change your morning routine frequently. It is important to practice spontaneity for nurturing a flexible mind.
These are some ways that can help you to develop your cognitive flexibility and to become better with your resilience, creativity and confidence level.
P.S.: Mental flexibility doesn’t mean being arbitrary, rather it’s a balance between control and spontaneity.