The Timeless Wisdom of Brian Tracy
I will start by saying that I am well aware that the book Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life by Brian Tracy is old. However, it is amazing, and everyone should read it. And I mean, go out and find a copy of it now and read it.
Are you still here? Well, okay, I’ll go on.
Psychosclerosis: A New Term for an Old Problem
There are many invaluable points in the book; however, for this post, I will focus on the concept of psychosclerosis.
Tracy describes it as “Psychosclerosis is another name for ‘hardening of the attitudes.’ This is experienced by a particular type of person who is rigid, inflexible, and unchanging. This is the kind of person who develops fixed attitudes on a certain person or subject and then resists any attempt to change his mind. This is often called the mechanical way of thinking.”
- As a nurse who is familiar with the medical term sclerosis (stiffening of a tissue/anatomical feature), I had never heard the term psychosclerosis. Yet, it is such a fitting description for so many people.
- People who are resistant to change.
People who have no desire to continuously learn. - People who are most comfortable with unquestioning their existing beliefs, habits, or ideas.
- Basically, people with a fixed mindset (you can read more on that in Dweck’s book Mindset).
The Danger of a Fixed Mindset
The term psychosclerosis perfectly sums up a fixed mindset in a way I didn’t know was possible.
Just as we want to ensure our bodies remain healthy and limber, we should want to do the same for our minds. It not only keeps us open to new ideas and ways of thinking but helps to keep our brains active and healthy.
My Personal Tools to Avoid Psychosclerosis
I have mentioned some of these things previously, but because brain health is so important to me, I regularly do things to avoid psychosclerosis:
- Reading books
- Learning new languages (currently working on German and ASL)
- Playing games
- Doing BrainHQ exercises
- Meditating
- Finding new things to learn each day
- Questioning everything
- Working on developing my growth mindset
- Exercising
- Engaging in interesting (and often ridiculously funny, sometimes philosophical) conversations
Challenge Yourself to Stay Mentally Flexible
It is easy to fall into the habit of just doing things the way they have always been - but I challenge you to do the difficult things that will help you avoid psychosclerosis. As E.M. Gray said, “The successful person has the habit of doing the things failures don’t like to do.”
Ponder This:
- What are some beliefs or habits you hold that could benefit from a little more flexibility?
- How do you challenge yourself to stay mentally limber and open to new ideas?
- In what ways can you incorporate more “growth mindset” activities into your daily routine?
Books
- Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life - Brian Tracy
- Mindset - Carol Dweck
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