Want to learn how to build the thinking habit? Do you ever feel like you are being too passive in your own life, just letting it pass by without making many proactive contributions? This is a state of mind that is very easy to slop in to, to have everything happen to you by default rather than by design, and whilst this might be fine for some, for others it can start to get disheartening and numbing. If you want to change this side of you, then you need to start practicing what is generally termed as the ‘thinking habit’. This is just a state of general awareness and activeness in your everyday process that will allow you to make more personal and involved decisions and choices. Here's how to build the thinking habit.
Being curious is one of the best tips for how to build the thinking habit. You should never stop being curious about everything and anything. Life is always ready to surprise you in weird and wonderful ways, that is if your eyes and mind are open to seeing it! Be eager to learn new things and hear new ideas, curiosity is the founding base on the way to mastering the art of the thinking habit.
Don’t stick to just one or two lanes when it comes to your reading material, try to browse as diverse and varied a selection of literature as possible. From fiction to non-fiction and all of the different sub-genres that they entail, never close yourself off to a certain topic or theme because by doing that you are essentially shutting off a particular part of your thinking process.
Now that you have agreed to broaden your literary horizons, you should also be doing as much of it as often as you can! As well as reading regularly, it’s also a good idea to read actively, and this can manifest in the form of something like a book club where not only do you read a book, but you are also encouraged to share your ideas with a willing and eager group of people.
Get into the habit of keeping a journal in which you can write down all of your fun and left field thoughts from the day. The more you record your thoughts, the more likely they are to stay with you, and from those recorded thoughts, others will be able to sprout, eventually building up your very own tree of curiosity and opinion!