The Magic of Big Thinking

Author's name: David Schwartz

Let the soul take its course before its separation, for the two neighbors whose homes are intertwined are separated by life. Al-Mutanabbi said in his poem that begins: "I fight horses whose riders are Time itself, alone, and I do not say such a thing while I have patience." Were it not for the fear of breaking the meter, we would have said: "And I do not say such a thing while I have profound thought." Does patience stem from a mere ability to endure pain, which is ultimately limited? Or does it stem from engaging the soul with a lofty vision that would not have emerged without broad-minded thinking, without which it is impossible for the soul to take its course or to channel its energies into any noble endeavor? In an age where the distances between information and its seeker vanish with a simple search or a question to artificial intelligence, and in an era where screens race to your pocket and technology to your fingertips, what stands between you and profound thought? What tempts you to send a lengthy voice message to a single friend, only to check your phone repeatedly to make sure they listened, when you could be building a podcast or YouTube channel that thousands would eagerly tune in to? Why waste hours scrolling through Facebook and Instagram, watching ads that their creators call "lives," instead of building a life worth living? This book is an invitation to abandon pettiness, worries, and concerns. A person's worth is measured by the importance of what they care about, and "a man's worth is measured by his ambition," as Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib, may God be pleased with him, said. Read it to listen to your higher self, not the worldly one, to broaden your horizons, to grasp the keys to big thinking, and to find the path to a life worthy of you and your dreams.