5 Ways a “History Head” Mindset Helps You Think Big

Want a secret weapon to gain more respect, get along better with others, excel at leadership, grow your business and just have more fun in life? Brush up on history.

Take it from this “history head.” A knowledge of history gives you deeper insights into yourself and others. When you become a “history head,” you gain an incalculable advantage over those who don’t have this mindset.

Here are 5 ways that becoming a “history head” will pay off and help you think big:

1. Discover the cure for the dreaded “presentism.” If you can only see the short term, you think only of the here and now. Losing all sense of perspective makes you prone to “presentism,” a sense of exaggerating present challenges out of proportion to all those challenges that have existed before.

2. Increase your odds of success. A knowledge of history is like a virtual time machine that lets you see the big picture. It’s easier to measure your current plans against things that have already occurred and weigh them against your aspirations for the future. While the nearsighted person sees only the present, and the dreamer sees only an imaginary future, often tripping over his or her mistakes trying to get there, a “history head” has a much stronger sense of reality and better chances of success.

3. Enjoy more career opportunities. History requires a complex skill set. It demands thorough research, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills. You must study and interpret a variety of sources, including politics, law, economics, sociology, psychology, the sciences and the arts, to extract meaning. These are exactly the high-level skill sets that are required in today’s top jobs.

4. Become a thought leader. Like many modern challenges in our world, history can be extraordinarily complex. In an era marred by fake news, history endows you with a healthy skepticism and a capacity to question the world around you. As you delve deeper, you almost always find unanswered questions, unclear information or missing pieces of evidence. At some point, though, you must stop researching and start developing a credible course of action. It’s like assembling a jigsaw puzzle, except there’s no picture to serve as a guide, and some of the pieces are missing. The historian, like any thought leader, must weigh the evidence, think clearly, and become a strong communicator who can express a compelling, accurate point of view.

5. Make life better. At its core, history helps you learn what it means to be human. You explore timeless issues and challenges that have impacted generations of people, both past and present. These insights equip you to better understand and work with the people in your world. Perhaps the biggest gift of all? History helps you appreciate today while building a better tomorrow.

Want more?
Thanks for stopping by.  I invite you to read more of my blog posts if you want more more intriguing Iowa stories and history, along with Iowa food, recipes and tips to make you a better communicator. If you like what you see and want to be notified when I post new stories, be sure to click on the “subscribe to blog updates/newsletter” button at the top of this page. Feel free to share this information with friends and colleagues who might be interested, too.

If you’re hungry for more stories of Iowa history, check out my top-selling “Culinary History of Iowa: Sweet Corn, Pork Tenderloins, Maid-Rites and More” book from The History Press, as well as my Calhoun County” book from Arcadia Publishing, which showcases the history of small-town and rural Iowa. Order your signed copies today! Iowa postcards are available in my online store, too.

Let’s stay in touch. I’m at darcy@darcymaulsby.com, and yettergirl@yahoo.com.

P.S. Thanks for joining me. I’m glad you’re here. 

@Copyright 2017 Darcy Maulsby & Co. 

About me:
Some people know me as Darcy Dougherty Maulsby, while others call me Yettergirl. I grew up on a Century Farm between Lake City and Yetter and am proud to call Calhoun County, Iowa, home. I’m an author, writer, marketer, business owner and entrepreneur who specializes in agriculture.  Learn more at www.darcymaulsby.com.