CHANGING YOUR MIND ISN’T HYPOCRISY. REFUSING TO QUESTION IT MIGHT BE. 👀
I genuinely hope I’m not the same person I was five years ago.
Actually, I hope I’m not exactly the same person I was last year.
I’ve said things I wouldn’t say now.
Believed things I’ve since questioned.
Recommended things I’d no longer recommend.
Trusted people I no longer trust.
Distrusted people I’ve subsequently learnt from.
And probably defended a few opinions far more confidently than the evidence deserved. 😂
I’m proud of that.
What would be the point of spending your life learning if you’re never prepared to let what you learn change you? One of the strangest things we do is use someone’s old words against them as though changing their mind somehow proves they’re a fraud.
Sometimes it does expose dishonesty.
Sometimes it simply proves they kept thinking.
The question I increasingly ask myself isn’t:
“Was I wrong?”
It’s:
“Knowing what I know NOW, would I still make the same choice, hold the same belief or behave the same way?”
If the answer is no, I don’t need to defend an outdated version of myself just to appear consistent.
I can course-correct.
In fact, I think we should be far more suspicious of the idea that changing our minds is weakness.
New information SHOULD sometimes create a new conclusion.
New experiences SHOULD sometimes change our behaviour.
Greater self-awareness SHOULD sometimes make us realise that something we’ve been doing for years no longer serves us.
Otherwise we’re not growing.
We’re just becoming increasingly committed to being consistent with our past.
I’m far more interested in where I’m going next.
So yes...
You are absolutely allowed to outgrow your own opinions.
I’d love to know: what’s something you’ve completely changed your mind about in the last few years?
Before anyone says it… NO, the answer to modern life isn’t buying another bloody thing. 😂 I’m actually becoming increasingly wary of “wellness” turning into another enormous shopping list.
You need this gadget.
This supplement.
This biohack.
This special lightbulb.
This pair of glasses...
No. You need to understand WHY first.
Everyone reading this will have a completely different light environment. Some of you will already dim your lights at night, use incandescent bulbs and barely look at a screen after sunset.
Others are spending most of the day indoors under artificial light, then sitting under bright LEDs with a TV, laptop and phone blazing away at 10pm.
That’s the bit I think we need to pay attention to.
Our biology hasn’t suddenly forgotten that day is supposed to look like day and night is supposed to look like night.
We have changed the environment enormously and then wonder why so many people’s sleep and circadian rhythms are all over the place.
Does that mean I’m replacing every bulb in my house overnight and throwing my phone in the bin?
No. 😂 (although I would lOVE to change out all the lights)
I’m making the changes I can, and using tools where they’re useful while I make the bigger ones.
One of those tools for me is my red evening glasses. They’re not going to win me any fashion awards, but I use them when I’m working late, watching something or inevitably looking at my phone when my environment should really be dark.
Don’t start with buying something, though. Start with FREE.
Get outside as early in the day as you can. Get real daylight into your eyes. Get outside around sunset when you can. Dim unnecessary lights in the evening. Make your bedroom properly dark.
Start reminding your biology what time of day it actually is.
And if your lifestyle means artificial light at night is difficult to avoid, that’s when tools can be really useful.
If you’d like the discount code for the glasses I use AND the link to my latest video explaining why light matters so much, comment LIGHT and I’ll send them over.
Ad free version: https://catherineedwards.substack.com/p/get-off-youtube-and-move-why-getting?r=129pj9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true