Talking of great, mediocre, and small minds

CEBU, Philippines - There is a famous quote circulating all over the internet and it goes:

"Great minds talk about ideas;

Mediocre minds talk of events;

Small minds talk about people."

As with other quotes culled from the web, this great message has been credited to a variety of great minds ranging from former US first lady Eleanor Roosevelt to Admiral Hyman Rickover of the US Navy and known as the Father of the Nuclear Navy.

There are also a variety of versions, bringing me to the conclusion that sometime in these great people's life they quoted this wonderful message in one of their talks, interviews, or discussions.

I am not surprised as this quote is packed with so much truth in it, and if we make it as one of our guiding principles, it would significantly change the way our conversations would go.

I first came to know of this quote in one of the lectures of the Brahma Kumaris Meditation Center (Address: 11-2 Forest Hills, Banawa, Cebu City. Tel: 032-2545975), although I could not exactly recall on which topic that was. It must have been about karma or about positive thinking, or perhaps on self-management leadership, because come to think of it, this quote applies to all aspects of our life.

Great minds talk about ideas.

A mind that is occupied with ideas has nothing in it but good positive thoughts, and with positive thoughts, there will always be a feeling of greatness, both for those from whom the positive vibrations emanate and to those who surround him or her.

Ideas of course would not mean discussing and debating on philosophical concepts that seems to have no practical application. Now, that would just be beer talk and would not result into anything positive. A battle of the ego so to speak, on who's interpretation of a concept is better and whose is garbage.

The internet, however, is filled with discussions of great ideas. The TED Talk series, for example, gathers great ideas from both ordinary and remarkable people of various ages, discussing ideas both simple and complex.

Listening to these ideas makes one realize at how simple the solutions to the world's problems could be, if only we make the time and the commitment to explore them.

Mediocre minds talk of events.

A simple mind is content to talk about the events that happened in his life. There are perhaps moments in our lives when we don't want to think and just want to share the good things in our life. Events that are memorable for us, those that has touched our lives, or those that inspire us. There is nothing wrong with being mediocre, but to occupy our day with mediocre thoughts would not be productive.

Mediocre thoughts can also be destructive if we allow it to consume us and let it transform into something negative by talking negatively of events and situations in one's life, and most especially if these events and situations is that of another person's life.

Mediocre minds can be harmless. Talk of events can be the start of a great conversation, transforming such conversation into ideas, but they can also be a start of a sour exchange when it veers toward the negative events that happened.

Remember that every event, every situation is not all bad, there is always something good that can be had of them, after all, there is benefit in everything. It's just a matter of recognizing what that benefit is.

Small minds talk about people.

I don't know about you but I admit, a day would not pass without me having to talk about other people. It's a habit that I continue to try to cut, but somehow, complaining of people, of events, of everything that happens in our life is an addiction that would need some form of rehabilitation in order to solve.

For almost ten years now I am exploring on the practice of Easy Raj Yoga meditation in order for me to shift negative thoughts into positive and productive thoughts.

Raja Yoga teaches one to control the flow of thoughts that come to our mind. It classifies thoughts into negative, positive, and neutral or mundane. Negative thoughts are those that are not beneficial to the individual, while positive thoughts bring benefit to the self and others. Mundane thoughts are ordinary, automatic, and necessary like eating, grooming, and walking.

What comes out of our mouths first came from our thoughts, that is why if we don't want to be known as those with small minds, changing our way of thinking would be the first step.

For more reflections, visit the author's blog, Tribo's Cup, at http://tribong-upos.xanga.com or follow him on Twitter at @tribongupos. (FREEMAN)