The Stubborn Mind Paradox
Why the strongest thinkers are those willing to change their beliefs
I've seen it countless times - and been guilty of it too.
Two people arguing in circles. Neither budging. Both digging in deeper with each round.
When they finally walk away still clutching their original positions, I wonder: What was the point of all that talking if neither mind was open to change?
Edward de Bono put it perfectly: "If you never change your mind, why have one?"
The question cuts deep.
We celebrate "standing your ground" and "unwavering conviction."
We admire the person who "never backs down."
But what if that's backward?
What if the real strength is in being willing to change course when new evidence appears?
I know a business owner who insisted print advertising was the only way to reach her customers. For ten years, she bought the same newspaper ads while her competitors moved online.
"This is how it's always worked," she'd say.
Her mind was made up. Unchangeable. Fixed like concrete.
Today, her shop is closed.
Meanwhile, her former employee who embraced digital marketing now runs a thriving business in the same town, selling to the same customers.
The difference wasn't skill or luck. It was a willingness to change her mind.
Our brains aren't meant to be storage containers for permanent opinions. They're processing tools designed to adapt.
The most successful people I know share this trait: they hold their beliefs loosely.
They say things like:
"I used to think X, but now I see Y."
"That's an interesting point I hadn't considered."
"Let me rethink this."
When was the last time you changed your mind about something important?
When was the last time you admitted, even to yourself, that you might be wrong?
If the answer is "I can't remember," your mind might be more decoration than tool.
Here's what winners understand:
Being stubborn about goals is useful. Being stubborn about methods is fatal.
The surgeon who refuses to learn new techniques. The teacher who ignores changing research. The parent who won't consider new approaches.
All waste the superpower that makes us human – our ability to adapt our thinking.
So today, try this uncomfortable experiment:
Pick one belief you're certain about.
Ask yourself: "What would convince me I'm wrong?"
If the answer is "nothing," that's not a belief.
It's a cage.
A mind that never changes is like a door that never opens.
Why have one at all?
What opinion are you most afraid to reconsider?
What might happen if you did?
~ aq