A short advice video by Brian Tracy describing three simple, learnable verbal habits highly creative people use—saying 'I was wrong,' 'I made a mistake,' and 'I changed my mind'—and recommending two practices to foster creativity: admit mistakes regularly and be willing to change your mind when presented with new information. The video closes with a viewer call to action.
Questions this video answers
Brian Tracy
May 24, 2013
Chapters
Did you know that highly creative people tend to have fluid and flexible and adaptive minds? Here are three statements that creative people can make easily and which you can learn by regular practice. The first is simply to say I was wrong. Many people are so concerned with being right that all their mental energy is consumed by stonewalling, bluffing, blaming and denying. If you're wrong, admit it and get on to the solution or the next step. This keeps your mind open and flexible and more creative. Second, non creative people think that it's a sign of weakness to say I made a mistake. On the contrary, it's actually a sign of mental maturity and personal strength and individual character. Remember, everybody makes mistakes every single day and admitting that you made a mistake just frees you of it completely. You don't have to explain, you don't have to justify, you don't have to defend. You just say I was wrong, I made a mistake and it's over. The third statement that creative people use easily is the words I changed my mind. It's amazing how many uncomfortable situations people get into and stay in because they're unwilling or afraid to admit that they've changed their minds. If you get new information or if you find that you feel differently about a previous decision, accept that you have changed your mind and don't let anyone or anything else back you into a corner. If a decision that doesn't serve your best interests as you see them now, have the ego strength and the courage to cut your losses, to change your mind, and then get on to better things. Here are two ways that you can break out of narrow thinking patterns and become more creative. First, be willing to admit that you are not perfect, you make mistakes and that you're wrong on a regular basis. This is actually a mark of intelligence and courage. And the second thing you can do is with new information, be willing to change your mind. Most of what you know about your business today will change completely in the coming years, so be the first to recognize it. Thank you for viewing this video on how to break away from old ideas. If you enjoyed this video, please press the like button below and click on the link on the screen to subscribe to my channel.
