Post by Sharon on Jul 17, 2010 10:41:58 GMT -5
INTELLECTUAL CHALLENGES
Mind Stretching - Exercising Flexibility
Flexibility is the capacity to bend without breaking, as well as a continual willingness to change or be changed in order to accommodate new circumstances. People with flexible minds are open to shifting their course when necessary or useful; they are not overly attached to things going the way they had planned. This enables them to take advantage of opportunities that a more rigid person would miss out on. It can also make life a lot more fun. When we are flexible, we allow for situations we could not have planned, and so the world continues to surprise and delight us.
Since reality is in a constant state of flux, it doesn't make sense to be rigid or to cling to any one idea of what is happening or what is going to happen. We are more in tune with reality when we are flexible. Being in tune enables us to adjust to the external environment and other people as they change and grow. When we are rigid or stuck in our ways, instead of adjusting to the world around us we hunker down, clinging to a concept of reality rather than reality itself. When we do this, we cut ourselves off from life, and we miss out on valuable opportunities, as well as a lot of joy.
Just as we create flexibility in our bodies by stretching physically, we can create limberness in our minds by stretching mentally. Every day we have the opportunity to exercise our flexibility. We can do this in small ways such as taking a different route home from work or changing our exercise routine. On a larger scale, we can rearrange the furniture or redo a room in our house. If these are things we already do regularly, we can stretch our minds by imagining several different possibilities for how the next year will unfold. As we do this, our minds become more supple and open, and when changes come our way, we are able to accommodate and flow with the new reality.
1. Plan and undertake a reading program of uplifting, outstanding literature. The selection of books may reflect a variety of interests or may emphasize one particular theme.
Recommended reading: The Four Agreements by author Don Miguel Ruiz.
ALWAYS DO YOUR BEST - Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgement, self abuse and regret.
DON'T TAKE ANYTHING PERSONALLY - Nothing others do is because of you. What others do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won't be a victim of needless suffering.
DON'T MAKE ASSUMPTIONS - Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness and drama. With just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life.
BE IMPECCABLE WITH YOUR WORD - Speak with integrity. Say what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.
2. Develop a new interest in any creative field (such as poetry, fiction, music, composition, art, dance, crafts, photography, drama) or in a hobby (such as coin, nature, or stamp collections; woodwork, astronomy). Emphasize involvement and participation in a area that is new to you.
3. Do you have an area in which you feel embarrassingly inept? Leave the pity party and go back to school. Search for a class or coach that can help you perfect your cooking, etiquette, speech, parenting skills, financial savvy, etc.
4. ..........................................................................................................................................................................................................................
5. ..........................................................................................................................................................................................................................
EXAMPLES OF INTELLECTUAL CHALLENGES
1. Enlarge a talent you have already developed, such as music, painting, writing, and dance. Pursue excellence to the point of performing, exhibiting, or publishing our talent for others.
2. Expand your cultural appreciation by completing a one-year study program of an art form available in your area, such as operas, symphony concerts, theater, museums, ballets, and folk dancing.
3. Enlarge your cultural appreciation by regularly attending cultural events available in your area.
4. Participate in a book-review group on a regular basis. Selections may come from any literary category, including biography, dramas, fiction and poetry.
5. Within your own family or WWWCOF friends, participate in a structured study of other countries. Prepare and present material about different countries and cultures.
6. Improve your knowledge in a specific academic field, such as history, science, literature, political science, or philosophy. Where possible, attend classes or lecture series in the field you have chosen.
7. Develop fundamental speaking and writing skills in another language.
Can you see the possibilities here? Communicate with other members and explore their unique and different life experiences, ideas and languages. The World Wide Web Circle of Friends consists of many people, many cultures, many religions, one heart, one world! Within our membership you will find a wide variety of personalities, interests, backgrounds, and ages ... a group of friends that spans the decades - from the youth to great - great - grandparents and everything in between. This should really help us to accomplish the challenges we set for ourselves!
Mind Stretching - Exercising Flexibility
Flexibility is the capacity to bend without breaking, as well as a continual willingness to change or be changed in order to accommodate new circumstances. People with flexible minds are open to shifting their course when necessary or useful; they are not overly attached to things going the way they had planned. This enables them to take advantage of opportunities that a more rigid person would miss out on. It can also make life a lot more fun. When we are flexible, we allow for situations we could not have planned, and so the world continues to surprise and delight us.
Since reality is in a constant state of flux, it doesn't make sense to be rigid or to cling to any one idea of what is happening or what is going to happen. We are more in tune with reality when we are flexible. Being in tune enables us to adjust to the external environment and other people as they change and grow. When we are rigid or stuck in our ways, instead of adjusting to the world around us we hunker down, clinging to a concept of reality rather than reality itself. When we do this, we cut ourselves off from life, and we miss out on valuable opportunities, as well as a lot of joy.
Just as we create flexibility in our bodies by stretching physically, we can create limberness in our minds by stretching mentally. Every day we have the opportunity to exercise our flexibility. We can do this in small ways such as taking a different route home from work or changing our exercise routine. On a larger scale, we can rearrange the furniture or redo a room in our house. If these are things we already do regularly, we can stretch our minds by imagining several different possibilities for how the next year will unfold. As we do this, our minds become more supple and open, and when changes come our way, we are able to accommodate and flow with the new reality.
1. Plan and undertake a reading program of uplifting, outstanding literature. The selection of books may reflect a variety of interests or may emphasize one particular theme.
Recommended reading: The Four Agreements by author Don Miguel Ruiz.
ALWAYS DO YOUR BEST - Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgement, self abuse and regret.
DON'T TAKE ANYTHING PERSONALLY - Nothing others do is because of you. What others do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won't be a victim of needless suffering.
DON'T MAKE ASSUMPTIONS - Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness and drama. With just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life.
BE IMPECCABLE WITH YOUR WORD - Speak with integrity. Say what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.
2. Develop a new interest in any creative field (such as poetry, fiction, music, composition, art, dance, crafts, photography, drama) or in a hobby (such as coin, nature, or stamp collections; woodwork, astronomy). Emphasize involvement and participation in a area that is new to you.
3. Do you have an area in which you feel embarrassingly inept? Leave the pity party and go back to school. Search for a class or coach that can help you perfect your cooking, etiquette, speech, parenting skills, financial savvy, etc.
4. ..........................................................................................................................................................................................................................
5. ..........................................................................................................................................................................................................................
EXAMPLES OF INTELLECTUAL CHALLENGES
1. Enlarge a talent you have already developed, such as music, painting, writing, and dance. Pursue excellence to the point of performing, exhibiting, or publishing our talent for others.
2. Expand your cultural appreciation by completing a one-year study program of an art form available in your area, such as operas, symphony concerts, theater, museums, ballets, and folk dancing.
3. Enlarge your cultural appreciation by regularly attending cultural events available in your area.
4. Participate in a book-review group on a regular basis. Selections may come from any literary category, including biography, dramas, fiction and poetry.
5. Within your own family or WWWCOF friends, participate in a structured study of other countries. Prepare and present material about different countries and cultures.
6. Improve your knowledge in a specific academic field, such as history, science, literature, political science, or philosophy. Where possible, attend classes or lecture series in the field you have chosen.
7. Develop fundamental speaking and writing skills in another language.
Can you see the possibilities here? Communicate with other members and explore their unique and different life experiences, ideas and languages. The World Wide Web Circle of Friends consists of many people, many cultures, many religions, one heart, one world! Within our membership you will find a wide variety of personalities, interests, backgrounds, and ages ... a group of friends that spans the decades - from the youth to great - great - grandparents and everything in between. This should really help us to accomplish the challenges we set for ourselves!