Make full use of weak ties and expand social capital.
In this day and age, more and more people are stuck in the dilemma of lack of connections. After working for many years, he is still confined to the original circle and has made almost no substantial progress. The reason for this is that they ignore the value of the existence of weak ties.
According to the theory of social capital, in addition to acquaintance relationships, we also need weak relationships made up of a large number of strangers. These kinds of relationships can open up new information and opportunities for advancement. When a stranger comes to you and proposes some kind of cooperation or investment idea to you, even if you are not optimistic, you should listen with curiosity and novelty. Because you can't tell what the odds are of an idea failing. As "The Black Swan Effect" says, many of the world's major events are unlikely to happen, but they eventually happen. If we reject strangers' ideas, we lose a lot of hidden treasures.
Of course, it's not to encourage people to blindly trust strangers. Instead, we need to develop an eye for imagination. Put yourself in the other person's shoes and guess where his ideas come from and what their purpose is. We also need to pay attention to whether the idea deserves to be scrutinized. Even if it turns out to be unworkable, this interaction provides you with more perspectives and ideas, which is also a reward.
Therefore, really powerful people are often good at taking advantage of weak ties, because they understand the value behind different ideas. This is also why successful people have so many friends and acquaintances from different circles. They don't easily reject strangers' perspectives, but listen actively with an open and mutually beneficial mindset.
Communicate repeatedly with others to open up your horizons.
In addition to taking advantage of weak relationships, we also need to maintain positive communication with those around us. Because repeated communication is a learning process in itself. According to social learning theory, people gain experience primarily by imitating and observing the behavior of others. Therefore, frequent interaction with others can expose us to a more diverse range of perspectives and a more comprehensive understanding of things.
But the problem is that many people have a "go their own way" mode of communication. As soon as others mention ideas, they reflexively deny, judge, and refute them, which ultimately makes it difficult to make substantial progress. In fact, anyone around him, regardless of his status or education, his words and deeds contain something to learn. If we can put aside our preconceptions and engage with others with an active mindset, we will find sparks of ideas.
A neuroscientist has found that when people communicate, the areas of the brain responsible for processing information are activated to varying degrees. This suggests that the brain's ability to process problems and make decisions increases when engaging in more frequent interactions. So, we need to step out of our own circle and try to understand each other who is different from us. Even if the differences persist in the end, such exchanges allow both sides to expand their horizons and obtain more novel perspectives, which is a kind of intellectual enhancement.
In general, whether it is taking advantage of unfamiliar relationships or frequent communication with people around us, it is an important way for us to expand our horizons and open up the pattern. Because there is no isolated individual in the world, when we actively listen to each different voice, we are connected to a world full of infinite possibilities.
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