Experience is like an orange… what you squeeze out is what you get. You have to squeeze as much juice from your orange as you can get, taste it and then savor the sweetness or sourness of it.

Many people let their experiences go without getting anything meaningful out of them. They see and feel things happen but they never question, they never ask, they never ponder, they never wonder. They just live through them and move on to the next. Oh, what a waste!

Our life basically, is made up of experiences. From the day we were born till the day we die, it’s all just experiences upon experiences- our own personal experiences and the shared experiences of others.

And embedded in our life experiences is the key to great wisdom if only man would reflect.

An open mind, not limited by critical thinking and skepticism is one of the great attributes of a man or woman with wisdom. When you allow biased beliefs and opinions get in the way of your analyses or learning you hardly get anything meaningful or mind-enriching out of it.

When other people share their life experiences with you, it is not for your entertainment. Listen, question, ponder and reflect, there’s something for you as well. What lessons can you obtain from your own experiences and those of other people?

A smart way to live…

Why wait until “it” happens to you before learning about how to deal with whatever “it” means.

“Life has a way of rewarding the prepared even when he/she’s not prepared enough.

And you can never be prepared enough for the unpredictable circumstances that show up in life… Prepare anyway.”

– mindconvos.com

Though our circumstances may differ (and they usually do), we all do not pass through the same life experiences: The fact that your friends married “the wrong men/women” really doesn’t mean all men/women are whack and you’d end up with same. It really doesn’t mean you should run from marriage for fear of marrying the wrong person. Rather you should reflect upon the circumstances and the roles each of your friends and their spouse had to play in their experience.

That’s where having an objective and open mind comes into play.

Without any form of bias towards your friends, what lessons can you learn from them that would help you avoid making the same mistakes as they did?

Connecting dots…

I have gone over some of my past experiences over and over again to find useful links that can be used to advance or improve my present situation.

There were times in the past when you passed through challenges or trying circumstances, how did you deal with them? Sometimes our past experiences show up again dressed in different clothes with a different name and circumstance.

How were you able to conquer your fears in the past? What moves can you borrow and then improve upon to tackle your present situation?

Sometimes, the experience is new, to you, but there are people who have had similar experiences, what can you learn from them that can help you deal with your own situation gracefully?

When connecting dots…

One great thing about past experiences: you saw the beginning and then the end, even though the end might have just been the beginning of another episode, you know what led to what and you saw how the challenges were overcome.

How did your obedience (or disobedience) to God or your parents turn out for you? If you had listened to that advice you were given years ago, what difference do you think it would have made in your life today?

If Steve Jobs never got kicked out of Apple initially would the iPhone still have come into existence? Steve Job’s experiences outside Apple, the struggles he faced restarting and running his own companies (NeXT, Pixar), the ideas he got while at it all contributed to the success he eventually had on returning to Apple.

Right there in our life experiences, there are dots to be connected, great lessons to be learned. But in all of these don’t forget to pray for divine wisdom; the kind of wisdom that helps you see the light in every dark situation, that helps you grow and then grow other people, the kind of wisdom that keeps you curious and enthusiastic about learning more from your own life experiences and the experiences of others.

And wisdom, like intelligence, is a gift- it should be used for the good of mankind.