3040: Is Flexible Thinking the Key to a Happy Life? by Stephen Guise of Mini Habits on Overcoming Mental Blocks

[00:00:00] This is Optimal Living Daily Episode 3040. Is Flexible Thinking the Key to a Happy Life by Stephen Guise of Minihabits.com And I'm Justin Malik, your very own personal narrator today and every day.

[00:00:14] Me narrating means there are no interviews, just a short podcast where we can both improve our lives one day at a time. So with that, let's get right to today's post and start optimizing your life.

[00:00:27] Is Flexible Thinking the Key to a Happy Life by Stephen Guise of Minihabits.com I wrote my book Elastic Habits because I discovered that flexibility was the main driver of behavior change.

[00:00:46] If behavior changes through consistent action, then whatever enables consistent action is the most valuable activator. That's flexibility. Everyone does well when they're fully motivated and have enough time and energy to act. That's what, 5% of the time? Real progress requires constantly overcoming internal and external resistance to action.

[00:01:10] When you're flexible, you gain significant power to overcome obstacles. If you'll only go on a straight line, a big boulder will stop you. If you're willing to go around, over or under it, you can proceed.

[00:01:25] It's a shame then that most people pursue goals in a straight line method. Ironically, it's done this way because it feels stronger. No excuses, I'll do this no matter what. What's far weaker? Imagine a boxer who only throws right jabs. How easy it would be to defend.

[00:01:44] It doesn't matter how powerful he is if he gives you an easy defense. His power can be neutralized. But now imagine if he has a full arsenal of different punches, uppercuts, hooks, jabs and crosses.

[00:01:59] Now you're in real trouble because he has multiple ways to attack. Flexibility activates power. Mental flexibility equals mental and emotional power. If punch flexibility creates fighting power and behavioral flexibility creates the power to change, what can mental flexibility do and what does it actually mean?

[00:02:22] Mental flexibility or flexibility of thought is the ability to think laterally. This idea is layered in the following ways. Creativity. Instead of assuming one way of doing something, do you ever consider alternative approaches?

[00:02:37] Problems. Instead of ruminating on issues, can you shift your focus to solutions or blessings instead? And when you initially assume something, do you ever challenge it? And if so, how quickly? Mental flexibility's main purpose is to prevent you from feeling stuck.

[00:02:56] When people feel stuck in nearly every case, they're creating that reality with rigid thinking. I felt stuck physically before meaning that I felt out of shape or in a fitness funk. But how does that make any sense when I can exercise in this instant?

[00:03:15] I make it reality when I let rigid thinking loop endlessly. I don't feel like lifting weights. I'm in a funk. I haven't worked out yet. That confirms I'm in a funk. I don't feel like working out, etc. Can you see how rigid thinking feeds on itself?

[00:03:35] Whatever rigid negative thought you have will generally compound unless you challenge it. Which of those in that list do you think is the root of the problem? Well, it's the second one. I'm in a funk.

[00:03:48] While this thought may seem innocent and merely observatory, it's loaded with dreadful implications. First, it implies finality. A person in a funk can't do much, can they? Thus thinking you're in a funk is like saying, I'm thirsty so I guess I can't drink water.

[00:04:07] This is a common and harmful thought pattern. When you have a negative feeling, it does not have to result in any certain thought or action. In other words, the admission of a feeling is not a contract. Mental flexibility allows us to escape these harmful thought patterns.

[00:04:26] And here's how it's different. I don't feel like lifting weights. Well, I could go for a short walk instead. It's a flexible idea, positive emotional shift. And well, I felt good. A short walk might not be the type of progress you envisioned initially,

[00:04:44] but look at how positive this sequence is compared to the rigid thinker. And it matters even more for the next instance. The next time you have the idea to lift weights, think of the difference. With rigid thinking, you'd remember where you left off.

[00:05:00] Oh right, I've been in a funk. And you'll likely continue to feel that way, feeding the thoughts and emotions that enable it. With flexible thinking, however, you'll remember your last attempt as a pivot to success. Thinking patterns and emotional health.

[00:05:18] The prior example shows how flexible thinking and ideas helps create behavioral success. But it's much more than that. It's absolutely essential to your emotional health to be able to shift your thoughts and behavior when necessary. Emotions are cyclical, just like thought patterns. They feed each other.

[00:05:38] Thus the flexible thinker is able to catch the beginnings of a negative cycle before it gets bad. It's amazing to think that a rigid thinker can turn one bad day or event into a bad week, month, or life.

[00:05:53] That sounds absurd, but think about what rigid thinking is and does. By its nature it doesn't change. It embeds itself deeper and deeper into your habits and psyche. Today I encourage you to monitor your self-talk. Challenge negative thoughts for veracity.

[00:06:13] Look for opportunities to pivot your thinking to a more useful place. The first step to increasing your flexibility of thought is awareness. Ask yourself questions about recurring thoughts and ideas such as what purpose they serve and if they're accurate. Your thoughts are your world. Take care of them.

[00:06:34] Think with flexibility and then you can keep the thoughts and ideas that serve you best. Challenge rigid thoughts that feed themselves, trap you, and steal your life force. Like anything else, the more you practice challenging your thought patterns,

[00:06:49] the better you'll get at recognizing them and pivoting to better ideas. You just listened to the post titled, Is Flexible Thinking the Key to a Happy Life by Steven Guise of Minihabits.com and I'll be right back with my commentary. Thank you to Steven.

[00:07:11] I think somehow I grew up with the idea of challenging our thoughts. I think it came from my sister and I'm grateful for it because I do think it's led me to outside of the box thinking in many different areas of my life.

[00:07:26] Don't think I'd be a podcaster without it, but I think there's still room for improvement. Like for me, I can definitely relate to that idea of I'm in a funk and then that turning into basically a self-fulfilling prophecy.

[00:07:40] For me, that takes the power outside of myself and more into external forces. Like, well once the weather changes then I'll get out of this funk. Or when I have a better nights rest then I'll do more high intensity exercise.

[00:07:56] When in reality that night's rest is likely in my control after all. And especially with some outside the box thinking, it could be improved at minimum. I'm sure everyone has some recurring thoughts that just end up becoming reality for us

[00:08:12] when from an outside perspective might be just that. Thoughts, not reality. So I think this one was a great reminder to keep these thoughts elastic as he says, as best we can. It can benefit us in so many ways.

[00:08:28] I hope it benefits you both this article and this podcast. I couldn't be here without you and I'm always open to feedback. You can get in touch at OldPodcast.com. Thank you for being here. Have a great weekend if you're listening in real time

[00:08:41] and I'll catch you tomorrow. Where your optimal life awaits.