As we get older, we tend to get set in our ways and our way of thinking. We like routine and cozy habits, and why not? After all, if it ain’t broke, why fix it.
We think we’ve got it all figured out: We’ve lived a bunch of decades, and we know what suits us and what doesn’t.
Yet, we also know that intellectual and social stimulation keeps us feeling younger, sharper, and, most importantly, happier.
And, because of that, pushing ourselves to be radically open-minded about trying new things and thinking new thoughts may turn out to be magnificently magical.
Though opening up to new ideas, activities, and habits may make you uncomfortable, at first, it could very well change your life for the better.
Let’s take exercise as an example. You’ve been walking as exercise for years. And walking has kept you feeling fit. But what if you opened your mind to try something radically different?
Stretch your mind a little further — maybe try tai chi, yoga, or fencing?
Have you considered how such an approach to your exercise routine could benefit your stamina and flexibility? What about for your health? And your mind? Maybe even your life?
Could this help you reveal a level of fitness you didn’t think was possible? Might it exercise your brain by learning new patterns of movement that might fire up your mental stamina and flexibility in other parts of your life?
Is it possible that, through a radically different exercise routine, you might meet new people, have new conversations, and maybe find mindful expansion that is intriguing, startling, exhilarating… and possibly magical?
A few steps outside your mental comfort zone, you may find the spark of a new passion; a renewed zest for learning, doing, being, embracing even more.
And this is just an example related to a radical shift in your exercise routine!
What if you open your mind to making new friends? Consider people you’ve met and liked, but didn’t pursue getting to know better because they didn’t seem to be your usual “type.”
What might you learn or discover about them or yourself by inviting them to grab a cup of coffee with you? Is that radical? You betcha!
Why not open up to exploring a subject or activity you previously decided just wasn’t for you? Something that makes your heart pump a little faster, or maybe even scares you a bit?
It could be anything:
- learning a new language.
- volunteering at a foster home.
- learning to sail or to knit.
- cooking in an ethnic cuisine you’ve never even tasted before.
- or maybe listening to a podcast about quantum physics (there’s my favorite radical mind-opener).
I challenge you to open up — radically! Don’t stay closed-up in your usual routines and habits a minute longer. Burst open your thoughts and shake up your routine with a dive into something you wouldn’t usually explore.
Wake up your brain and heat up your heart in the most unexpected ways. You might find it not only feels infinitely rewarding and exhilarating, it also feels — you guessed it — magical.
