Here are some pointers from the April 25th Monthly Meeting of the Mind (& Brain) about Jumping to Conclusions that are important in mastering the art and science of change.
Internal Locus of Control
If you don’t have a primarily internal locus of control, you’re likely to believe you can’t affect the outcome in your own life. As a result you may not take action on your own behalf. And if you do take action, when you face obstacles or challenges, you may not be able to see what you can do to overcome them. You may not trust that you can make a difference in your own or anyone else’s life.
Intuition
If you have a black or white view of intuition (you should always trust it or never trust it), you are missing out on an entire layer of self-knowledge, self-awareness, and self-trust that you need in order to achieve a truly satisfying and meaningful life. You may not take action that can help you develop your intuitive skills in areas that are important to you. And you could set yourself up for making bad choices or decisions either way (always trusting or never trusting).
Tolerance for Frustration
Personal and social change are not easy. If you have a low tolerance for frustration, you’re likely to give up too soon or take the path of least resistance because it’s more familiar, more comfortable, and easier. A high tolerance for frustration is essential in any significant undertaking, whether personal, collective, professional, or world-changing.
Mental Model
If you don’t recognize the role your mental model plays in every arena of your life—and if you aren’t actively expanding and updating it—you’re limiting yourself in terms of your ability to understand and interpret your experience as well as in what it’s possible for you to achieve. In order to change anything, you first have to change your mental model.
Tolerance for Ambiguity
A high tolerance for ambiguity correlates with higher critical thinking skills. If you can’t tolerate ambiguity, you’ll be much more likely to automatically accept whatever first impressions, snap judgments, and immediate conclusions your brain serves up to you. As F. Scott Fitzgerald said, “The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.”