We all want to be right and sometimes making a right choice is really important (ie, when crossing the street). But what is right for you may not be the best choice for me. In her work with families, therapist Virginia Satir used to say that there were 250 different ways of washing dishes depending on who was doing them and what ingredients they used, encouraging her clients to open their minds to alternatives and be more accepting of others’ choices. There are many different ways of doing things and multiple points of view, so choose to not surrender your ability to think and decide for yourself because of another’s manipulation, no matter how subtle or tempting.
Believing that there is only one right way to think about something and trying to impose that belief on others is often the cause of wars, large and small, and we can see that today in both global and local conflicts. Author and teacher Louise Hay wrote “If we are stuck in believing there is only one way or one viewpoint we are shutting out most of life”. Cultivating an open mind allows us richer experiences. If we can see only black and white we will be blind to all the colors of the rainbow, and our personal experience will be very small. You can be passionate about your beliefs and still have empathy and support for others who see things differently. If you are open minded you can also allow for the possibility that there is more to learn about the world and keep your ego in balance.
"In order to have faith in our own path we do not need to prove that another person’s path is wrong. Anyone who does so clearly has no confidence in his own steps.” Author Paulo Coelho