What we have learned to look for in a situation determines mostly what we see.
Ellen LangerRead
Virtually all of life's ills boil down to mindlessness. If you can understand someone else's perspective, then there's no reason to be angry at them, envy them, steal from them.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Understanding others' perspectives can alleviate negative emotions and behaviors.
This quote by Ellen Langer emphasizes the importance of mindfulness and empathy in human interactions. It suggests that many problems stem from a lack of awareness and understanding of others, and by actively embracing different viewpoints, we can foster compassion and reduce feelings of anger, envy, and conflict in our lives.
Themes
MindfulnessUnderstandingEmpathyAngerPerspective
In practice
Example use cases
During a team meeting to promote collaboration and resolve conflicts.
More from Ellen Langer
All quotes →Stress is a function not of events, but of our view of those events.
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To be mindfully engaged is the most natural, creative state we can be in.
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People are at their most mindful when they are at play. If we find ways of enjoying our work blurring the lines between work and play the gains will be greater.
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When people are not in the moment, they're not there to know that they're not there.
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Out of an intuitive experience of the world comes a continuous flow of novel distinctions. Purely rational understanding, on the other hand, serves to confirm old mindsets, rigid categories. Artists, who live in the same world as the rest of us, steer clear of these mindsets to make us see things anew.
Ellen LangerRead
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