Active Vs Passive Mind
Active vs Passive Mind
Passive minds wait idly for facts to imprint knowledge onto their brains.
Active minds don't wait. Instead, they constantly seek out knowledge by actively asking intelligent questions in order to discover facts.
But it is important to know that becoming an educated individual, requires more than simply accumulating an ever-increasing number of facts.
To become educated requires the development of a mind, which seeks not only facts, but also their causes.
In ancient Greece, the great philosophers taught that the ability to understand the causes of facts was more important than learning the facts themselves, because the facts change daily, but the underlying causes of facts remain the same.
Classical Greek philosophers taught that the ability to identify causes, was the greatest intellectual endowment; so, its development was seen as the primary purpose of formal education. Aristotle wrote that the best life was one that was devoted to "truth seeking", because the "Truth Seeking Citizen" is always pleasant, successful and interesting.
In order to develop an active mind, it is necessary to learn its three basic rules.
1. The law of Universal Causation.
"Every event is caused by the conditions that preceded it".
That is, there are NO causeless events. Things don't "just happen".
So, if you want to know why something happened, then you must look at the past and examine the conditions that led up to the event.
This is why scientists seek to isolate events, (preferably under conditions that they can control) in order to investigate the specific set of conditions under which the event always occurs, and in the absence of which, it never occurs.
2. The law of cause and effect
"Under the same set of specific causal conditions, the same effect will always occur".
This law implies two other rules:
- "If you want a particular effect to happen, then you must initiate its specific causes". Merely wanting, hoping or praying that something will occur is not enough to make it happen - you must actively discover its causes and put them in place. If you don't initiate the causes, then you won't get the effect you wish for.
- "If you initiate a particular set of causes, then the effects of those causes must inevitably be produced". Which is why nobody can indefinitely escape the painful consequences of their bad habits or wrong actions; bad actions produce bad consequences.
3. Uniformities of coexistence.
Just because two things always occur together, does NOT necessarily mean that they are causally connected, because they may both be the consequence of a SHARED cause. For example, poverty and crime often are seen together, but that does NOT mean:
- Poor people are more likely to be criminals.
- Wealthy people are less likely to be criminals.
- If you give criminals money, they will stop committing crimes.
From the above notes, we can see that the possession of an active mind is NOT a thing of chance, but is the result of a careful study of the rules of effective thinking.
Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
If you would like to know more about how to solve problems and achieve goals, please attend our Critical Thinking and Problem Solving Course. Critical thinking empowers business leaders and managers to identify inconsistencies in their plans and replace errors with coherent, logical thought and action.
Definition: active mind
In personal development, an active mind is a mindset that always questions, hunts for causes, links cause and effect, and tests ideas. It never waits for facts to arrive; it seeks them, asks why they happen, and uses the answers to guide action. Without these four traits, the mind slips back into a passive state.
Show CG4D Definition
- Actively seeks new facts through planned questioning
- Traces each fact back to its underlying causes
- Applies cause-and-effect laws to predict and shape results
- Reviews and corrects its own ideas when new evidence appears
Article Summary
An active mind never waits; it asks why, tracks cause and effect, and then acts. A passive mind sits and hopes. When you swap waiting for questioning, you use the laws of cause and effect to solve problems and shape your world.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some questions that frequently get asked about this topic during our training sessions.
What is the main difference between an active mind and a passive mind?
Why do classical Greek thinkers value searching for causes over collecting facts?
What is the law of Universal Causation?
How does the law of cause and effect guide problem solving?
What are “uniformities of coexistence” and why do they matter?
How can I start developing an active mind today?
Why is an active mind linked to success and enjoyment?
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Did You Know: Key Statistics
LinkedIn Learning’s 2024 Workplace Learning Report shows that critical thinking is now one of the top three skills UK employers say they need most. The World Economic Forum’s 2023 Future of Jobs Report states that 73% of companies list analytical thinking as their number-one skill priority for 2024–2025.About the Author: Chris Farmer
Chris Farmer is the founder of the Corporate Coach Group and has many years' experience in training leaders and managers, in both the public and private sectors, to achieve their organisational goals, especially during tough economic times. He is also well aware of the disciplines and problems associated with running a business.
Over the years, Chris has designed and delivered thousands of training programmes and has coached and motivated many management teams, groups and individuals. His training programmes are both structured and clear, designed to help delegates organise their thinking and, wherever necessary, to improve their techniques and skills.
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