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Unlimited Horizons
Opening Our Mind Opening ourselves to new concepts is far harder than we think. It does not mean to kindly listen to new ideas, consider them sympathetically and then - like a benevolent judge - decide whether to accept them or not. To open ourselves to new ideas and concepts means • to not instantly oppose new, uncomfortable ideas -
before they even have a chance of influencing us • to swallow our pride when someone we deem beneath
our status presents a better idea than we had • to overcome the complacency that makes us cling to
outdated concepts - and then to discard these concepts - even if all this takes energy, makes us feel uncomfortable, and requires a complete re-thinking of our world.
It's Easy to find the Starting points Whenever (new) concepts or ideas provoke strong passionate. feelings within us - irritation, anger, repulsion, spite, or the passionate, aggressive defense of our entrenched ideas, - then it is worth the effort to examine these (new) ideas more closely. Exactly these passionate emotions chain us to old concepts, - and thus bar us from experiencing anything new.
And even if giving up opinions and positions we resolutely committed ourselves to may hurt our pride and makes us feel awkward or embarrassed, this process unfailingly guides us to ever deeper answers, - it is the path that leads outside the narrow circle of our known life.