Want to Be More Open-Minded?

Here is another valuable Management Tip of the Day from Harvard Business Review. To sign up for a free subscription to any/all HBR newsletters, please click here.

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Open-mindedness at work — about new products, strategies, business models — is one key to success. But how do you develop it? Research has found there are several things you can do.

o For one, travel, whether it’s to another country or somewhere closer to home. As you encounter ways of living that differ from the ones you know best, your brain will get better at accepting new approaches and ideas.

o For a cheaper option, read fiction. Books can train your brain to be curious about others’ experiences and opinions.

o Another low-cost option is mindfulness meditation, which has been shown to help people be willing to revise their ideas.

o And if you’re someone who tends to get stuck in their ways, there’s a simple trick you can try: Start sentences with “I could be wrong, but…”

This conveys your openness to others and forces you to start conversations with a willingness to change your mind.

Adapted from “A New Way to Become More Open-Minded,” by Shane Snow

Here’s a direct link to dozens of other Management Tips.

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