I like to tell people that the best things I have ever experienced in life have happened because I met a stranger.
Which is objectively true: everyone you know now was at some point unknown to you.
So the point of that is if you want to grow, go create your own Type 2 Luck. Go meet people.
A corollary is also true: the best ideas I know are because I stopped listening to my own brain and started listening to someone else.
Listen to everyone. Read ancient books written by anonymous authors thousands of years ago. Listen to podcasts from yesterday. Talk to the barista at Starbucks.
Don’t worry. You will develop discernment. You will be able to sort the bullshit from the jellybeans. it is possible to have an open mind and a well-developed filter.
Get outside your head. Get humble.
Think of the number of people who have lived and died since there have been people. think of the number of people who will live and die after you are dead.
Do you really believe that what you see and know and believe is the pinnacle of knowledge and understanding? Sorry to disappoint you. You ain’t that special.
You aren’t even the smartest person in your hometown right now.
Stay humble. Have an open mind. When a new idea comes along it is ok to say “oh, maybe” and keep it alive in your head before deciding to adopt it or discard it.
Let time be your filter, mostly. Time reveals all flaws eventually. You don’t have to prove something right or wrong. Time does that job for you.
Easy. Let’s go about our day, each of us, with lightness in our step.