Opinions determine our experience of life.
More than anything else, our opinions provide us with who we think we are and how we see
the world.
As a result, we hold our opinions very tightly, for we fear that if we lose them, we will
become void of our identity.
We hate few things more in life than having someone oppose and strip us of an opinion.
When our opinions are challenged and proven wrong, it often feels as though our identity
has been weakened and diminished.
But why must this be the case?
It is not our identity that is being challenged, but merely an extension of it.
Our opinions are like glasses.
Through which, we view and discern the world around us.
But just like how overtime the prescription of one’s glasses may change, so must our
opinions.
As our understanding of life changes, the prescription of our opinions must change with
it.
For another opinion to disprove our own only serves to benefit us because it gives us the
opportunity to replace our old lenses for potentially new and improved ones.
All the while, our identity as the individual who is wearing the glasses can remain integral
and constant.
And so, we must learn how to accept and embrace this process as a positive thing.
More important than having opinions in life, is having good ones.
Progressive ones.
Sharp ones.
The only way to possess opinions with such sharpness is through the willingness to listen
to and consider other opinions with rationality and objectivity, and see if compared to ours,
they provide a clearer and improved image of the world.
We should embrace our own opinions and fight to defend them, but only once we have removed
our ego from the equation and considered the opposing opinions with legitimate open-mindedness.
There is very little that any person can be certain about in this life, and we must self-admit
that we are all merely humans with a constantly changing and loose grip of reality.
We have opinions to help us navigate and create meaning in life, but we must not let them
in combination with our ego, sweep us away into believing that we are able to construe
an ultimate reality.
Just as others have the potential to have misled opinions, so don’t you.
As we are introduced to new experiences, ideas, and understandings in life, our opinions must
change accordingly.
And if we are willing to adapt, our identity can move fluidly with them.
Our life will then improve because we will become able to rationalize and exchange opinions
with others in a cohesive and beneficially effective way.
By slightly detaching your ego and identity from your opinions, you can embrace the fact
that you are not always right, and as a result, you will not always
be wrong.