Transform Your Work & Life With A Beginner's Mind

What if you could transform your work and personal life by shedding the weight of having to be seen as an expert?

This talk calls you to embrace a 'beginner's mind'—a state of open curiosity that allows for infinite possibilities to emerge in your experience. By releasing our ego's need to know everything, we rediscover a childlike sense of wonder that sparks joy in the obvious, mundane, and what we take for granted.

The need to be an expert, and to have all the answers, can actually limit us. Instead, when we approach our life with a beginner's mind, it reawakens us to the amazement of being fully present and drinking in each new experience without any preconceived notions or judgments.

How much more would your life be filled with joy and wonder if you approached every situation as an awe-inspiring journey of growth and awareness, instead of feeling pressured to prove your worth?

Let's find out.

Transcript

You've awakened,

Like a bird who has been trapped in a cage for far too long and is finally meeting the freedom of the open sky for the first time.

You are ready to embrace the world and experience all the magic and wonder this permeating life force has to offer you.

With infinite possibilities now at your feet,

Where does one begin?

Simple,

Begin with a beginner's mind.

Hey there conscious creators,

Thanks for being here right now with me and for hitting play today,

Not just on this audio track,

But for hitting play on your life.

And welcome to another edition of the You Are A Conscious Creator podcast,

Where I hope this message can provide you with some inspiration and guidance to help you consciously create a life of meaning,

Purpose and one that you absolutely love.

So today I want to talk about having a beginner's mind.

I would venture to say a beginner's mind is paramount to living a more enriching and harmonious life.

And I know for me it's a mindset that has been incredibly helpful in my own personal awakening,

With my own spiritual growth,

And overall helping me derive more enjoyment from the various situations I encounter in my day to day life that I sometimes face with resistance.

But let's face it,

In this social media world where it seems like everyone is trying to stand apart as a subject matter expert and everyone is vying for attention or to be known and recognized as a thought leader and showcase our clout and expertise,

Having a beginner's mind is not something we lead with in our dealings with others,

In our work and in our day to day life.

But I'd argue to say that this need to stand out and to be seen as an expert in our work,

With our skills,

In our careers and in our relationships creates unnecessary unpleasantness in our life.

Let me share a little story with you.

Very early in my career I landed a job as a director for a swanky Manhattan web design agency.

I thought I had it all figured out.

I had the fancy title,

The nice office.

I was the go-to guy in the company for all website related matters.

Everyone came to me for my expertise and for guidance and for me to consult with them.

It was awesome.

But then about a year later the company was bought out by a larger corporation who had a lot more resources and in came all these Madison Avenue marketing gurus wanting to school me on building a more effective website.

Well that's at least how my ego interpreted it.

And boy did that put a giant chip on my shoulder.

So how did I respond?

I resisted.

I resisted all the workshops and trainings the company paid for me to attend by acting like a passive aggressive jerk with his arms folded and a sour look on his face.

My ego was on the chopping block.

And therein lies the benefit of beginner's mind.

It takes us away from our egoic mind where we view every new situation as a possible threat to our value and skills and allows us to see it clearly from a place of mindful awareness and sincerity.

The zen master Shunryu Suzuki sums it up best.

In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities but in the expert's mind there are few.

So consider the work you do in your career.

Beginner's mind challenges us to be willing not to be an expert.

And in our lives in general beginner's mind calls us to be willing not to know.

I can't tell you how many times I fought tooth and nail both in my work and in my personal life just to be proven right or tried hard for others to see me as some all-knowing beacon of wisdom who had all the answers.

But beginner's mind prompts us to ask a very simple question.

What if I went into this situation right now like I know nothing?

I mean while it's easy to assume that you know best and that you know what others should do and that you know what's going to happen next,

It's just as easy to assume you don't.

These three words of I don't know can be truly powerful.

And then if you follow them up with the words but I'm fully open to learning,

In so many situations in life these might just be the greatest words you can say and dare I say some of the wisest.

Let's give this a try.

How do I solve this problem I'm facing at work?

I don't know but I'm fully open to learning.

What is my partner going to say next?

I don't know but I'm fully open to learning.

What is the secret to happiness?

I don't know but I'm fully open to learning.

What is enlightenment,

Peace,

And love?

I don't know but I'm fully open to learning.

Is what I'm saying right now in this moment the complete unadulterated truth?

I don't know but I'm fully open to learning.

I remember several years ago on a job interview,

The hiring manager asked me a technical question that stumped me.

But instead of squirming for an answer to sound impressive,

Like I knew what I was talking about,

Like I typically would,

I took a deep breath and simply said,

Hmm,

Interesting.

I really don't know.

I'm not familiar with that.

I didn't say this because I was practicing beginner's mind.

At that moment,

Something just came over me,

In which the energy it would take to act like I knew what I was talking about seemed more draining and more taxing than any potential discomfort from admitting I didn't know the answer.

And while I didn't get the job in the end,

And by no means am I saying this as career advice,

It sure was liberating not having to pretend to know what I was talking about.

Sometimes it can be so draining to have to continuously uphold an image of expertise and of extreme competence and that we are so skillful and so knowledgeable in what we do.

But this is not to say that we should be naive,

Act ignorant,

Or forego our knowledge or opinions.

Instead at the heart of beginner's mind lies the true gem that can shift our experiences.

And that's a sense of genuine curiosity,

Which can serve as the fuel that propels us forward on our path of self-discovery and growth.

When we approach life in this manner,

We become open to new experiences,

New ideas,

And new perspectives.

Every situation,

Especially ones that create uncertainty and when our authority feels challenged,

Then becomes a chance to explore,

Innovate,

And expand our understanding of ourselves,

Others,

And the nature of reality itself.

As a result,

Life becomes much more exciting,

Interesting,

And fun because we are curious and willing to learn.

Not having to know everything and have all the answers can truly be an intimate way we can be with life.

It's like treating life as a joyous experiment and living fully engaged with eyes wide open instead of halfway shut.

So here are a few ways to help you cultivate a beginner's mind.

First,

There's an interesting little exercise I like to do that can really help you viscerally experience beginner's mind.

I like to call it remembering what it's like to be a human.

And all you need to do is to find some quiet time throughout the day and commit to just being for a set period.

Don't do anything,

At least not intentionally.

Don't try to follow your breath.

Don't visualize.

Don't focus on anything.

Nothing.

Instead,

Just observe what it is like to be a human without any judgment or critique.

Your only intention is to pay attention to the life happening right now,

To stay curious and perhaps learn something new from your experience.

You can do this in your formal meditation practice,

Or you can just set aside a few minutes or even just a few seconds to play with this.

If you're interested in trying something like this,

I have two meditations here on Inside Timer that you can check out.

One is called Beginner Meditation,

Experiencing Who You Really Are,

And the other is called Morning Inspiration,

Married to the Amazement of Being Alive.

But either way,

Challenge yourself to set aside a few minutes each day and genuinely pretend you are encountering being a human for the very first time.

Another way to cultivate beginner's mind is to seek fascination in the otherwise mundane,

Obvious and what you take for granted.

To be curious and open in situations you typically feel unimpressed by,

Or think you have all the answers to.

And we can do this just by asking ourselves a few mindful questions before heading into any of these types of situations.

For instance,

You can ask yourself.

.

.

Can I see this current situation as an adventure,

As an exploration,

As a vehicle for my personal growth,

To expand myself in any number of ways,

Intellectually,

Emotionally,

Spiritually or physically?

Can I surrender to this situation by seeing it as a clean slate in which nothing else matters except the current moment,

And I am here now to come away with something new?

Can I surrender to that?

My life is a movie playing out right in front of my eyes.

Can I honor what its present scene is offering me?

Beginner's mind simply is a call,

A call challenging us to make the effort to force our eyes to see,

To force our brain to fire off new neurons,

And to force our hearts to understand something new.

And lastly,

We can strengthen this eyes wide open attitude of beginner's mind by simply reminding ourselves as much as possible to ask these type of questions,

No matter the situation we are heading into.

We just have to remember to have this intention,

To keep opening ourselves up,

To keep opening our eyes and notice where we are.

There's a lot to be amazed by,

Even if you think there isn't,

Even if you think you've heard it all,

Seen it all,

And you know it all.

Mary Oliver in her poem When Death Comes beautifully says,

When it's over,

I want to say,

All my life I was a bride married to amazement.

I was the bridegroom taking the world into my arms.

That's what beginner's mind is all about.

To live each day and in each moment open and willing to be amazed.

A bride married to amazement.

I was the bridegroom taking the world into my arms.

Speaking of being amazed,

Did you just almost fall out of your chair after hearing that,

Like I do every time I hear it?

It's the tiniest things,

Like reading and re-reading a beautiful line in a poem,

Or seeing the night sky like you're seeing it for the very first time.

But really you are,

Because every time you look up at the sky,

It's the first time you're seeing the sky in this exact way.

So whether you're having a simple conversation with a loved one,

Or you're in a meeting at work,

Or cooking dinner,

Which you've probably done thousands of times,

What can you observe different about each time you encounter these familiar experiences?

What is something new that you can learn?

What amazement can you find?

How can you be that bride married to amazement,

Or that bridegroom taking the world into their arms?

All you need to do is coach yourself to slow down,

Breathe deeply,

And give yourself grace.

Remind yourself,

I don't need to be a rockstar.

I don't need to be the best.

I don't need to be the all-knowing superhero.

I am happy and utterly curious just to experience what this life is offering me right now.

This is the way of the beginner's mind,

The way deep down each of us yearn to live.

So the only question that remains,

What is stopping you?

What is stopping you?

Thanks for listening friends.

Have a wonderful,

Beautiful,

And highly conscious day.

Much love.

This was another episode of the You Are A Conscious Creator podcast.

For more tools,

Resources,

And insights on consciously creating a life of meaning,

Purpose,

And one that you absolutely love,

You can visit AnthonyVLombardo.

Com.