Imagine you were blind and suddenly gained your eyesight. What a life-changing event that would be!
We can have a similar experience when we suddenly see something in our minds. This is known as insight. Although we may be mentally blind to something, a sudden flash of insight, an “aha” or “eureka” moment, happens that changes everything!
What if there were a way to develop or enhance this inner vision? There is!
Read on to learn more about improving your inner vision to gain more insights!
The blind leading the blind and sighted
What better way to learn to enhance your insight than from those who cannot see with their eyes yet see more than many of us who are not blind?
An example of such a person with extremely keen insight was Helen Keller. Some claim she was the “blind leading the blind and sighted.” A famous quote of Keller’s was:
“The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision.” Helen Keller (1880–1968)
Although she was blind, Keller accomplished far more during her life than most of us who have eyesight. And to make matters even more complicated, she could not hear.
Keller lost her sight and hearing at the age of 19 months. Yet that did not stop her from becoming a person of significance in the world. A few of her many accomplishments include being:
- The first deaf and blind person to earn a bachelor’s degree
- The author of 12 books
- A prominent political and social activist
- A leading member of the American Foundation for the Blind
- A world-renown speaker
- Awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1964
- Ranked by Time Magazine as one of the most influential people of the twentieth century
- An inspirational icon for millions across the world to this day
Keller accomplished far more than this short list, but for the sake of brevity, we will leave it at these. Can you imagine achieving a fraction of what Keller did in her lifetime, with or without eyesight and hearing?
If you wish to learn more about Keller’s amazing life, read her autobiography, The Story of My Life, first published in 1903.
Insight
How do you develop insight? Let’s start by looking at the definition of insight:
insight ( noun) — the capacity to gain an accurate and deep intuitive understanding of a person or thing. Oxford Languages dictionary
Since insight is about two complex subjects, a person or thing, and because each of us can learn, the possibility of developing a great depth of understanding exists. It could be gaining deeper insight into your spouse or a person in history, such as Christ. Or it could mean creating a deeper understanding of things like various igneous rock types or a broad subject such as engineering or psychology.
The great thing about the human mind is that it can gain amazing insight over time.
Make it personal
Creating more of these insightful moments only takes an open mind, the ability to learn, ask powerful questions, think, and time. Without these, gaining greater insight into people or things will be challenging to do at best and impossible at worst.
To begin gaining new insights, why not start with the person you know best — yourself? You can uncover how developed your insight is and where you can enhance it by asking yourself the following four questions.
1. Am I able to keep an open mind, read, and learn to listen to develop a new and deeper understanding of myself and those to whom I am close?
If you have already made up your mind about a person or a subject, you shut off your ability to see (uncover) more. An open mind without judgment is a must for developing insight of any kind. To learn more about gaining and maintaining an open mindset, check out this brief article: Change Your View of the World
What insights have you gained from answering question #1?
2. Can I consider other people’s perspectives?
While in line with keeping an open mind, developing many perspectives about a subject is crucial to gaining more insight. Without this ability, your world will be much smaller than it could be. The subject of perspective-taking is well worth studying. You can find more about building perspectives in this brief article: You Can Expand Your Mind
What insights have you gained from answering question #2?
3. Do I know the difference between my needs and wants?
Have you worked on developing an understanding of what you want (something nice to have, yet you could do without) versus what you need (something you must have to live and thrive)? To learn more about wants and needs, read this short article: Do You Want It or Need It?
What insights have you gained from answering question #3?
4. Do I understand the deepest sources of how I view myself and my abilities?
Have you developed insight into your innermost being — understanding your self-imposed limitations and strengths? Have you examined the assumptions you make and their impact on your life? Check out this brief article if you wish to know more about this subject: Learn to See More Clearly
What insights have you gained from answering question #4?
Final thoughts
While the above questions will help you learn where you are and gain more insight, they are only the beginning of this life-changing journey.
Hopefully, you see how asking yourself powerful and insightful questions can help you further develop insights. Your answers alone will help you begin to build greater insight. It takes work, time, and effort to do this work, but I assure you it will be worth it! The answers can take you to new places, changing the trajectory of your life.
“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” Helen Keller
I suggest you lean on Helen Keller’s insight and find someone to do this work with you to accelerate your progress.
Remember this:
“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched — they must be felt with the heart.” Helen Keller
And never forget:
“Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.” Helen Keller
I challenge you to sit in a quiet place with your diary and perhaps someone close to you and tackle the above questions. The only thing that can stop you from beginning the work of gaining insight and molding your life into the creation you genuinely desire is you!
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