do these 4 things to become a big picture thinker

INSTRUCTIONS FOR BECOMING A BETTER THINKER

Do you want to learn how to master the process of sound reasoning? Is it important to you that you become a better thinker than you are today? Then you must participate in a continuous process of thought improvement in order to see results. I suggest that you do the following steps:

 

 

1. Allow yourself to be exposed to constructive criticism.

The best thinkers are continuously priming the pump with new ideas. They are always on the lookout for stimuli to get the creative juices flowing, since what goes in always has an influence on what comes out.
Read books, examine trade periodicals, listen to recordings, and spend time with people who are forward-thinking and innovative. Likewise, when you come across anything that interests you—whether it’s someone else’s concept or the germ of an idea that you’ve come up with yourself—keep it in front of you. It may come up later. Put it down in paper and store it someplace in your favorite thinking spot to serve as a reminder and to inspire your creativity.

 

 

 

 

 

2. Make yourself available to good thinkers.

 

Spend time with individuals who are suitable for you. During the course of working on this part and bouncing my ideas off of several important individuals (in order to make my thinking more flexible), I noticed something about myself. Almost everyone in my life who I consider to be close friends or coworkers is a critical thinker in some way. Now, I’m a fan of everyone. I make an effort to be courteous to everyone I encounter, and I want to provide value to as many people as possible via conferences, books, audio classes, and other means. 

 

 

However, the individuals I seek out and choose to spend time with all provide me with opportunities to learn and grow via their thoughts and behaviors. They are continually striving to improve and learn new things. The same is true for my wife, Margaret, as well as my close friends and the executives who operate my businesses. Every single one of them is an excellent thinker!

 

Sharp individuals, according to the writer of Proverbs, sharpen one another in the same way that iron sharpens itself. If you want to be a keen thinker, you need surround yourself with bright thinkers.

 

 

 

 

 

3. Make the decision to think positive thoughts.

 

To develop into a good thinker, you must make the decision to be deliberate about the thinking process. Put yourself in the best possible position to ponder, shape, stretch, and land your ideas on a regular basis. Make it a priority in your life. 

 

 

Keep in mind that thinking is a discipline.
A few weeks ago, I had breakfast with Dan Cathy, the president of Chick-fil-A, a fast food corporation based in the Atlanta region. I informed him that I was now working on this book and inquired as to whether he placed a great value on thinking time.

 

 

Not only did he say yes, but he also shared with me information on what he refers to as his “thinking routine.” It assists him in combating the frenetic pace of life that makes it difficult to think strategically. Approximately one-half day every two weeks, one full day every month, and two or three full days per year are set aside just for contemplation by Dan, according to him. Dan notes, “Because I am often distracted, this helps me ‘keep the main thing, the main thing,’ as the saying goes.”

 

 

It is possible that you may wish to do something similar, or that you will want to build your own plan and strategy. Any decision you make should be preceded by a visit to your thinking space, the acquisition of paper and a pen, and the documentation of your thoughts.

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. Take Action on Your Positive Thoughts

Ideas only last for a limited period of time. You must take action on them before the deadline expires. Aces of the air during World War I When Eddie Rickenbacker stated, “I can offer you a six-word prescription for success: Think things through —then follow through,” he captured the essence of the situation.

 

 

 

 

5. Allow your emotions to inspire you to think of something positive.

 

In order to begin the thought process, you must depend just on your sensations. It was my contention in Failing Forward that you can act your way into feeling far more quickly than you can feel your way into action. If you put off doing anything until you feel like it, you will almost certainly never get around to it. 

 

 

 

 

The same is true when it comes to thinking. You can’t put things off till you’re in the mood to think about it. My experience has shown that once you begin to participate in the process of healthy thinking, you will have the ability to harness your emotions to fuel the process and generate mental momentum.

 

 

 

 

You should give it a go. After you’ve gone through the disciplined process of thinking and experienced some success, let yourself to appreciate the moment and experiment with riding the mental energy generated by that achievement, if possible. If you’re anything like me, it’s likely to spark new thoughts and ideas that will be useful.

 

 

 

 

 

 

6. Repetition of the Procedure

Having a good notion does not translate into having a happy life. People who get a single brilliant idea and attempt to ride it for the rest of their lives often wind up miserable or bankrupt. He or she is known as the one-hit wonder, one-book author, one message presenter, or single-time invention, and they are known for spending their whole life fighting to safeguard or promote their singular conception of the world. 

 

 

 

 

 

Success comes to those who have a complete mountain of gold that they are continuously mining, not to those who discover a single nugget and attempt to live off of it for the next fifty years. You must keep repeating the process of positive thinking in order to develop into someone who can mine a large amount of gold.

 

 

 

 

 

 

DELIVERING YOURSELF INTO THE BEST POSITION TO THINK

 

It is not difficult to develop into an excellent thinker. It’s a matter of discipline. The six things I’ve listed will put you on the path to developing a more positive way of thinking in your everyday life. But, on a day-to-day basis, what do you do to come up with particular ideas?

 

 

I’d want to share with you the technique that I’ve found effective in discovering and developing positive concepts. It’s definitely not the only one that works, but it’s the one that has worked for me in the past.

 

 

 

 

1. Find a quiet place where you may reflect on your thoughts.

It is certain that you will produce excellent ideas if you go to your chosen thinking location with the expectation of generating pleasant thoughts. What is the most conducive environment for thinking?

 

 

 

 Everyone is unique in their own way. Some folks think their best while they’re in the shower. Others, like as my buddy Dick Biggs, prefer to spend their time at a park. When I’m driving, flying, or relaxing at a spa, the ideal locations for me to contemplate are the following: Ideas also occur to me in other locations, such as while I’m lying in bed at night.

 

 

 

 It’s for moments like these that I keep a special lit writing pad on my bedside. I feel I have frequent ideas because I make it a practice to visit my thinking locations on a regular basis. If you want to develop ideas on a constant basis, you must repeat the same process.

 

Find a quiet area where you can think, and make a plan to write down your ideas so that you don’t lose track of them. When I discovered a quiet area to think about my thoughts, my thoughts found a quiet space inside me to think about them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Locate a space where you can shape your thoughts.

 

Ideas seldom arrive fully developed and entirely thought out in their entirety. The majority of the time, they must be molded before they have any solidity to them. They must, in the words of my friend Dan Reiland, “hold up to the scrutiny of clarity and questioning.” During the molding process, you want to subject a concept to rigorous examination.

 

 

 

 

 Many often, a concept that appeared brilliant late at night turns out to be completely ridiculous in the light of day. Inquire about your concepts by asking questions. They need to be fine-tuned. One of the most effective methods to do so is to put your ideas down on paper.

 

 

 

 “Learning to write is learning to think,” said S. I. Hayakawa, a professor, college president, and former United States senator. Without being able to express yourself properly in paper, you don’t know what you don’t know.”

 

 

As you form your ideas, you can determine whether or not a certain concept has promise. You come to terms with what you’ve got. You also learn a lot about yourself throughout this process. The molding time excites me since it embodies the following:

 

 

 

A source of humorous relief is frequently found in the failures of one’s thinking.
Humility: I am awestruck by the times in which I connect with God.
Excitement: I like mentally rehearsing a concept or notion. (I refer to this as “futuring” it.)
Creativity: In these times, I am not constrained by the constraints of reality.
God created me for this process; it allows me to employ my most valuable assets while also bringing me delight.

 

 

Honesty: When I examine a notion in my head, I am able to discern my genuine motivations.
When you mold an idea, you discover what you believe and what is really important to you.
Change: The most of the adjustments I’ve made in my life have been as a consequence of careful consideration of a topic.

 

 

 

You have the ability to mold your ideas practically anywhere. It’s just a matter of finding a space that works for you, where you will be able to jot down notes, concentrate on your job without being distracted, and ask questions about your ideas.

 

 

 

 

3. Locate a location where you can stretch your thoughts.

 

Even if you stumble across brilliant ideas and spend time mentally molding them, don’t believe you’re finished and that you can quit right there. It is possible to lose out on some of the most important components of the thought process if you do this. You are missing out on drawing people into the conversation and extending ideas to their fullest potential.

 

 

 

I have to confess that I was a frequent offender of this blunder earlier in my career. Before discussing an idea with anybody, even those who would be most affected by it, I wanted to see it through from conception to completion. This was something I did both at work and at home. However, I have learnt through the years that working as part of a team is significantly more effective than working on your own.

 

 

 

I’ve discovered a type of formula that might assist you in expanding your thinking. This statement states that “the right thought combined with the right people in the right environment at the right time for the right reason” equals “the right outcome.”

 

 

 

This is a difficult combination to defeat. Every concept, like every person, has the potential to develop into something extraordinary. Finding a location to extend your mind is where you will discover that potential.