Thinking outside of the box

When I started to read the book, Think Big by Ben Carson, I almost dropped the book, even I love not to drop books I have started to read. Two things initially got me bored about the book:

It was a biography. I was looking forward to reading about what attitude will expand my mind and make me to really think outside of the box—think big
There are too many stories about others I cared less to know

But along the line, I found a lot useful in the book. First thing that got me awestruck was when I googled Ben Carson, and I found he is the current U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. As at the time he wrote the book, Ben Carson was a neurosurgeon—a very good one, that got accolades from every angles. He was the first to separate Siamese twins, and got successful. To say the least, he was a very smart and brave surgeon.

I like to share my wonderful experiences I had reading the book. The book is divided into two parts—stories about those who gave their best to influence the life of Ben Carson and how we can give our own best to better influence ourselves and that of others too. For those who are not good readers, I recommend starting with the second part.

In the second part of the book, Ben Carson analysed how we can come up with our best and thinking big by creating an acrostic out of THINK BIG which made the jewel of the book.

T = Talent. There is one thing we really like to do naturally—one thing that others see as work, but we see as having fun. This is our talent. We must see to developing this.

H = Honesty. No one really thinks big with so much lies and dishonesty stocked up in his/her brain. Lots of great people live at least an open lifestyle. Mark Zuckerberg (founder of Facebook) once said he likes to live an open lifestyle.

I = Insight. Part of how one can think big is having insight—paying attention to one’s environment and having to learn from what goes on. It is important that one understands rather than just knows. Understanding implies that one knows what to do with the knowledge gained.

N = Nice. If you are gonna think big, you’ve got to be nice. It involves being considerate, big-hearted and not looking down on others. Ben Carson narrated how he has got lots to learn from junior staff in the hospital he was working because he was friendly with them, where others in his positions would have rather felt they were too ‘big’ to associate with them.

K = Knowledge. The art of thinking big involves acquiring knowledge. Ben Carson brought forth the old saying that ‘No knowledge gained is a waste’. He impressively analysed how we will end up expanding our minds when we involve ourselves in reading outside of our areas of specialization. In my case, my love of reading, for example, makes me to pick up and finished reading the book Think Big and many more books outside of my jurisdiction; my passion for writing prompts me to pen down this article; and my knowledge of HTML influences the neat arrangement of this write-up. Of course, I've had other hobbies that I've got to learn, and that pays off.

B = Books. Books are monuments devised by the great minds as avenues they can share their ideas across. Books are the ladders through we climb up the shoulders of the giants. They bring us closer to those we look up to as role models, and get the secrets of how and what they have done to achieve successes in certain areas. Indeed, books are for reading.

I = In-depth Learning. Ben Carson pointed out that the importance of seeking knowledge, and going in-depth cannot be over-emphasized. This part reminds of the saying imparted by one of my mentors that ‘You’ve got to know everything about something, and something about everything’. Give your best possible in your area of specialization.

G = God. Ben Carson displayed the importance of God’s guidance in all we do. Ben pointed out how God will make himself available to us when we seek for him, how God is ready to work out miracles in our lives when we request for it. Really, I have good time reading the book Think Big, that I will like to read it again, and will also recommend it for others too.