Mindful Thinking:
How To Party Like Leonardo da Vinci
by Maya Frost
After studying scores of great thinkers
like Leonardo da Vinci, I think I've stumbled upon
what really set them apart from the rest of the folks
living (and thinking) at the same time.
It's remarkably simple. They learned
how to entertain a thought.
Aristotle said, "It
is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain
a thought without accepting it."
Hmmm. To entertain a thought without
accepting it. No judging.
Just simple awareness and an intention to welcome it warmly.
We need to do that. Everyone needs
to learn how to be good host or hostess to new ideas.
In fact, our goal should be to become the Martha Stewart
of mental entertaining!
What if you treated a new thought
like a guest?
It's easier to think about mental
entertaining if we put together a to-do list, just
like Martha. Here it is:
#1 Make the first move.
First of all, you issue an invitation. Nothing fancy.
You don't have to make any major investment or lifelong
commitment. You're simply inviting this person in.
It's the same with initiating the
entertainment of an idea. You might see a quote on
the side of a bus somewhere, and decide you'd like
to explore that concept more deeply. Or, maybe you
find yourself bumping into the same topic all the
time, and so you make up your mind to learn more about
it. Either way, you need to be ready to initiate the
process. Don't hide--you won't meet new ideas if you
scurry away whenever the doorbell rings.
#2 Prepare. Uh-oh.
Your house is a mess. You'd better do some cleaning.
You're not really trying to impress, but hey, you
could certainly do some sprucing up and get the place
looking neat and inviting.
Prepare for a new thought in the
same way. Make some space in your mind to think about
something new. According to Deepak Chopra, the well-known
author on health and longevity, the average human
has 60,000 thoughts a day.
Pretty impressive? Well, here's
the kicker: 57,000 of those are the same ones you
had YESTERDAY! Now that's some serious clutter! Get
rid of a few of those dusty old thoughts and make
room for new ones.
#3 Offer a warm greeting.
When your new guest arrives, be warm and inviting.
After all, you're hoping to start a friendship. Put
your best foot forward.
It's the same with an idea. If you
face it with skepticism or fear, you won't
be entertaining it for long. You'll be eyeing your
watch, yawning, or looking for a way to end the discussion
early. You've got to be open and full of anticipation
to prepare an environment in which new ideas will
be explored and integrated fully. Just as it's no
fair making lame excuses or having your friend call
to interrupt the visit, it's also cheating to cut
out too soon when it comes to entertaining an idea.
#4 Make introductions.
This is the big one. You would certainly introduce
your guest to everyone at the party, with a special
effort to connect them to those with whom they may
have something in common.
Any new idea you consider will be
more likely to be welcomed if you actively and intentionally
introduce it to your other ideas and interests. Look
for unusual and inspired pairings. How does it fit?
Where does it fit? DOES it fit? You won't know until
you try.
Picture Leonardo da Vinci's mental
entertaining. His new idea, Human Flight, arrives,
and immediately Leo sets about introducing him to
others. "Human, meet my good friend, Engineering,
and his lovely wife, Fabric Design. Oh, and have you
met Bird Anatomy? She lives just around the corner
from you. Oh, Dr. Entomology has arrived! Listen,
Dr. E is absolutely brilliant, but a bit hard of hearing.
Ask her about her recent work on the wings of insects!
Now, you all make yourselves comfy and I'll go get
some more wine."
What happened at that party? Leonardo
threw these ideas together, and BAM! What emerged
was the idea for a perfectly designed parachute as
well as a remarkable helicopter--hundreds of years
before the Wright brothers started building their
flying machines! Talk about a soaring success! Don't
you wish you'd been there?
#5 Offer the best seat in
the house. You usually sit in that nice chair
there by the fireplace, but when a special guest comes
over, you graciously offer it.
When you are entertaining a new
thought, give it the consideration it deserves. Every
time you think a new thought, your brain is actually
creating a new neural pathway. It's like a jungle
in there, full of nerve endings and ganglia and all
kinds of connections. Help it along. Make it comfortable.
Once you've considered an idea,
that pathway is there. All you have to do to keep
it "live" is to keep going down that path
often enough to clear the trail, but not so often
that it becomes a rut.
#6 Listen, inquire, and
show interest. Ask questions. Dig a little
deeper. Find the connections to other people, places,
and activities. Learn as much as you can about your
new idea.
#7 Relinquish control.
Just like when you introduce guests to each other,
you should not try to control the outcome. Some guests
might hate each other on sight, while others click
instantly. People might argue, or a married guest
might sneak off to a back room with someone other
than their partner. Anything can happen!
That's not up to you. You're having
this party to offer an opportunity for people to connect.
Make introductions, insert a few comments, smile and
acknowledge everyone, but for the most part, just
let things happen. Don't direct the flow of ideas.
#8 Leave room for future
possibilities. Even if you decide this guest
of yours is insufferable, you don't want to burn any
bridges. Be gracious, and be glad you were excellent
enough to offer the invitation.
You're not going to like every idea
that comes your way. And you might not find any other
interest or idea that connects with it initially.
That's fine. You need to develop the ability to recognize
useful concepts and distinguish valuable and valid
ideas from those lacking a strong foundation. That's
what critical thinking is all about.
But you also need to file that idea
away so that you can look it up if and when you DO
meet a likely candidate for another gathering of thoughts.
There is a great deal of room for
different styles of mental entertaining. Maybe you're
best at dealing with only two ideas at a time, or
maybe you want to throw a huge bash and welcome all
comers.
Entertain in whatever style suits
you. Tete-a-tete or bacchanal—it doesn't matter,
as long as it's happening.
Learn how to entertain a thought.
With a little effort, you'll become a perfect host
or hostess to new ideas that come your way. And guess
what? You'll have no hangover, no cleaning up, and
no regrets.
Party on!
© Copyright 2003, Maya Frost
Maya Frost
has taught thousands of people how to pay attention. Through her
company, Real-World Mindfulness Training™, she offers
playful, powerful eyes-wide-open alternatives to meditation.
To read her free tips and tricks for everday awareness, visit
http://www.Real-WorldMindfulness.com
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