4 More Unconventional Ways To Expand Your Mind

A few weeks ago, I put together an essay that was all about four ways you can expand your mind. The essay that you are about to read is, in essence, a continuation of that prior essay. Here, you will learn four more unique ways that you can expand your mind, along with the effects of each method. My hope is that, by the time you finish this essay, you feel inspired to explore your mind — and, in turn, yourself — in an exciting and enjoyable manner!

Mind-Expander 01: Explore The Questions Most Important To You

The world is a vast cornucopia that is filled with endless treasures, wonders, and unknowns. Our lives are much the same.

Too often, though, such facts go unrecognized and ignored, simply because we fail to ask questions that allow for those aforementioned truths of both this world, and our lives, to be revealed and understood.

For us to recognize just how vast this world really is, and just how exciting our lives are and can be, we need to change a fundamental aspect of our behavior: the questions that we ask.

Everyone asks questions. Everyone asks questions every single day of their lives. More often than not — and, really, this is just my experience and my truth — these questions are of little note and far from inspiring. Two examples of the questions many of us often ask with unacknowledged frequency are “Will it rain today?” and “Is the bus going to be late?”; among many, many others.

Naturally, there is nothing wrong with those questions. Both of those questions, and those that fall into the same mold, are useful questions that pertain to specific moments and specific outcomes. But, these questions are quite limited, as the only possible answers are “Yes” or “No”, and, more importantly, questions of this sort are often the only questions that we ask with any degree of regularity.

By asking such questions, and asking only questions of that sort, we deny the endless beauty that lies all around us, and focus on that which is, ultimately, trivial and uninteresting.

To see and experience more of what already exists, the easiest thing we can do is ask questions. But, not just any questions; questions that inspire curiosity, joy, passion, excitement, awe, and love. Asking those questions, and asking them as often as we can, will lead to a richer experience of the world, a life of extraordinary abundance, and a mind that is engaged in perpetual growth and expansion, simply by virtue of engaging with the world as it truly is: limitless and infinite.

In my experience, the easiest way to engage with this method is to create a list of questions that fascinate, compel, and inspire you. Coming up with these questions is not always easy, especially if you haven’t given much thought to that basic premise. But, there is a way that you can come up with questions a little more easily, and I would like to share that with you.

Take out a sheet of paper and a pen — or, alternatively, go on your computer and open up a word document. For each line on that piece of paper, write a number; go from 1 to 20. You are going to write out 20 questions.

Right after you have put together that outline, I would like you to begin writing down your questions. Before you do so, though, please remember Rudyard Kipling’s “Six Honest Serving Men”: what, why, when, how, where and who. Questions written using those words tend to be open-ended and expansive, and both of those qualities ensure that you are able to play and explore as freely as you wish.

As you write, allow yourself to put down any question that comes to mind. Even if the question seems silly, write it down. Later on, you can remove the questions that you really don’t like but, for now, it helps to write down all of the questions that come to mind.

After you finish writing your questions, allow yourself to glance at the list. Every single question that you have written down is a valuable question to ask and explore. Finding the answers to such questions is, of course, rewarding. But, to truly expand your mind, focus not so much on the exact answers, but on the possibilities that each question allows for, and the myriad of ways in which you can explore those possibilities and engage with each question.

Engaging in such a practice, as often as you can, will expand your mind and your life, in ways that you would never dream of.

Mind-Expander 02: Gaze Into A Wall

No one will deny that Leonardo da Vinci was, by all measurements, a creative genius. But, what those who are unfamiliar with the man may not know, is that he had a number of peculiar habits for tuning into the various creative states that made him, and his work, so remarkable.

A list of every single habit that da Vinci found valuable would take up far more space than this essay allows for. Because of that fact, we are only going to focus on one habit: gazing into a wall.

More specifically, gazing into a wall for a certain period of time — five-minutes, for example — and allowing yourself to see the landscapes, stories, battles, histories, concepts, forms — ad infinitum — that exist within that single wall. Da Vinci did this and, in doing so, he noticed things that no one else noticed, and observed the limitless network of details and associations that exist within the most mundane, and minute, of objects and qualities.

To do this, there are several recommendations you should take note of. None of these are absolutely necessary, but they are worth considering and acting upon.

The right wall makes all the difference. A wall that is perfectly even, free of blemishes, and utterly plain will lead to something, but that “something” may not be what you want. For this reason, finding a wall that is filled with cracks, bits of dry paint, and noticeable blemishes, is recommended. A wall of that sort will only lead to greater mind expansion.

As you gaze at the wall you have chosen, make a conscious effort to observe and, in turn, to be steady as you observe. Associations, concepts, and moments of inspiration will all follow. But, rather than actively seeking to evoke sensations and moments of that sort, allow yourself to simply observe, in the knowledge that the expansion of your mind, and all that it entails, will follow.

To ensure that the experience of gazing at a wall is as fruitful as it can be — possessing the same qualities, and level of quality, that da Vinci experienced — set aside at least five-minutes to gaze at your wall. More is ideal, since the extra time allows for further inspiration to arise, and this will, in turn, allow for greater mind expansion. But, if you don’t have much time, or simply want to see how this works, set aside five-minutes and allow for what will arise to, inevitably, arise.

After you are finished gazing at your wall, take some time and record what you have experienced. Even if nothing especially notable took place, take the time to record that. You may discover that, in recording your lack of an experience, that a perceptual shift, of one sort or another, has occured.

No matter what, always remember that the world is far more vast than any of us can begin to fathom. Engaging in practices such as this one only affirms such truths, while also affirming the neverending journey of mind expansion that we can all begin and surrender ourselves to.

Mind-Expander 03: Take A Walk

Unlike the first two mind-expanders, this mind-expander consists of three methods, all of which fall under the base concept of “taking a walk”. Each one of these methods will expand your mind and, perhaps more importantly, your sense of self.

Remember, no matter what anyone tells you, you are far more powerful than you can ever truly know.

The first method that I am about to describe is one way of stepping into your power and understanding the power that you possess. But, it must be said, the last two are far more effective at creating such an effect, yet the two methods after this are often far more notable if you use this method prior to those last two.

To begin this first method, set aside some time for a nice, long walk. In truth, the walk can be as long or as short as you want it to be, but being able to walk for as long — or as little — as you want allows you to enjoy the experience far more than if you are in a rush. Being able to walk for at least twenty-minutes is ideal and, if you can walk for longer than that, then that’s even better!

Right before you begin this walk, allow yourself to make an assumption, and then allow yourself to think and act from this assumption. For some, this assumption will be silly and preposterous; that’s okay, and remember, you only need to work with this assumption for the duration of your walk.

The assumption that I am asking you to make is as follows: the world is telling you something very important, something that is crucial to not only your life and destiny but the future of this world and your role in creating such a future.

For you to discern what the world is telling you, however, you must pay attention to what is taking place. By paying attention, you will notice things, and these things will inform the message — or, more likely, messages — that you take away from your walk.

Due to the importance of the message(s) you are receiving, I recommend writing them down and saving them. That way, if you need to remember what it is that the world has told you, you won’t have any problems doing so.

The second method is quite similar. But, rather than walking as if the world is speaking to you, assume that you are, in fact, speaking to the world through your present emotional state.

Just assume that the emotions and feelings that you are experiencing — even the emotions and feelings that are less intense than the others — are affecting the world around you in tangible ways.

As you walk, pay attention to the ways in which your present state is affecting the world. You may find that people look at you in a way that reflects your state of being. Perhaps, the various animals of this world move towards you — or away from you, for that matter. Those are just two examples, out of innumerable others.

For the third, and final, method, I would like you to assume something that, depending on who you are and what you believe, may be both silly and deeply narcissistic. No matter, though, I am only asking you to walk with this assumption for the duration of your walk and, when you are finished walking, feel free to toss out this assumption.

All of that being said, however I do encourage you to keep the experience, and to meditate upon it after you are finished walking. You may find a treasure or two that’s worth keeping!

The assumption that I am asking you to walk with is that, quite simply, you created the world that you are walking in and experiencing. More than that, though, this isn’t just a world that you have created, it is a new world that you created for the sole purpose of experiencing something new and transcendent. You are not familiar with this world, even though you created it, for it is a world that was born out of a desire for novelty and growth.

To make this a little easier, you can imagine that you are having a dream and that, while you do know you are dreaming, you aren’t entirely sure of the journey that this dream is about to take you on.

Remember that, since you created this world, you are untouchable. You can dispense with notions of weakness and limitation, allowing yourself to feel, and act, from a state of both extraordinary power, and sincere playfulness.

Mind-Expander 04: Play With Your Assumptions Through Questioning

For this final mind-expander, all you must do is ask questions that go beyond the assumptions you hold in this moment. You can ask any question, and you can explore any assumption. All that is required, though, is that you ask with genuine sincerity, and allow what comes to be noticed and appreciated.

To give you an example of what this method entails, let’s say that you believe yourself to be somewhat shy and a little socially awkward. Both of these are, of course, assumptions that can be questioned and explored. To do this, begin asking yourself questions that go against the nature of those assumptions, questions such as “What makes me so charismatic?” and “Why am I so magnetic in my interactions with people?”.

Those are just two examples of questions that you can ask. No matter what you ask, though, make sure it goes against the various assumptions you possess. This is especially important if you hold certain assumptions that aren’t serving you and, as such, need to change.

As you ask those questions, you will automatically produce a series of responses. More often than not, these responses will come with ease but, at the same time, it will seem as if you are making them up on the spot. Supposedly, the reason for this is that when you ask a question, your Subconscious Mind must give a response, and this response often feels improvised and, to some extent, unnatural.

Let yourself become swept up in the various responses that emerge. You do not need to control these responses, nor must you put together the responses that follow in a way that adheres, in any way, to the assumptions you currently hold, or to any semblance of “realism” or “reality”. Just allow the responses that follow to emerge.

Every response is a treasure. Every treasure of a response contains, within it, questions and assumptions that hold even greater treasures. Make sure to notice the treasures contained within your responses, and allow those treasures to guide you in both the next steps of the process, as well as your conduct.

Just as an example of the treasures that your responses will contain, let’s go back to “Why am I so magnetic in my interactions with people?”. Let’s say that you ask that question and, from asking that question, you receive this as a response: I am magnetic because I choose to be magnetic; I am passionate and excited and I allow those feelings and qualities to be present and, in doing so, I accept myself for who I am and live from the knowledge of who I am and the assuredness that results from that acceptance.

You may not receive a response quite like what I just described— that was, in fact, my response — but you will receive a response. Within the response that you receive, you will find the key to what it is you are looking for, as well as the seed of possibility that allows for new qualities, concepts of self, realities, passions, visions — and so on and so forth, endlessly and infinitely — to emerge. The treasures that emerge can then be utilized and harnessed, so that you can become that which you desire to be and experience that which you seek to experience.

All of what you receive in a response can, and should, be used. Returning to our example, for you to become truly magnetic, begin by accepting yourself and your passions. From that, immerse yourself in those passions, those wonderful sources of bliss and inspiration, and do so as often as you can, with a sense of both desire and pure joy, so that you feel as good as you can feel and, as you do so, emanate those lovely and radiant qualities that comprise your own personal magnetism.

Regardless of what you ask, or how you ask it, I encourage you to remember Rudyard Kipling’s “Six Honest Serving Men”: What and Why and When and How and Where and Who. A question bound to a “Yes” or “No” response will lack the treasure that you seek, making it all the more difficult for you to expand your mind and reach greater heights.

Conclusion

In the end, every single one of the mind-expanders that you’ve just read about is powerful. I speak from experience. But, even more than that, these mind-expanders are easy, and they require a fairly small time investment. For that reason, among many others, I encourage you to play with these mind-expanders.

No matter what, engaging with them will take you somewhere very special. That, my friend, is a promise.

As always, please have a wonderful day and, if you would like to reach me for any reason at all, you can do so at “maxwellcakin@gmail.com”!

Best Wishes & Have A Wonderful Day!