Ego vs Shoshin: Beginners Mindset

Shoshin, which means “beginner's mind.” Shoshin refers to the idea of letting go of your preconceptions and having an attitude of openness when studying a subject.

The beginners mind is a concept that talks about how as we progress and learn we tend to think we are experts in that field, which then brews arrogance and the inability to learn due to being blinded by our own "knowledge".

What is the main benefit of the Beginners Mindset? The Japanese Zen Priest, Shunryu Suzuki that said:

Think about how this spans across all facets of life, you think you know something which then makes you stop learning. I would argue that it is one of the main reasons we don't achieve what we set out to. Because when we reach a certain level our ego kicks in and doesn't want us to look at the eras of that task that we are not good at.

To make a successful business you need a plan, branding and an idea/product to sell. But if you only make a product with no plan to sell and scale, it is doomed to fail.

A further example of this was when I was learning handstands; I started learning on the parallets (wooden raised handles) which for my wrist at the time, was more comfortable. As my handstand skill progressed on the parallets, it did not directly on my hands. I was becoming good (and reliant) only with the assistance of the parallets and refused to practice on my hands because it felt like I was going backwards in terms of skill.

I then adopted the beginners mind, started practice on my hands and eventually caught up in skill level which then allowed me to take my handstand practice into yoga.

How many ares of our life do we do this in I wonder?

Lets say someone has a degree in Sport and Exercise Science, and then refuses to learn other movement techniques that would be of benefit because it wasn't part of the curriculum "I studied this, I know best." Which then leads to them cutting of their own learning and growth potential.

You can assume a healthy balance of CONFIDENCE based on your learning and real world experience, but once you deny another potential way or deny someone els' perspective it then becomes ARROGANCE.

As American author, speaker, and pastor who has written many books, primarily focusing on leadership says:

Im so fascinated by this idea and realise how blind I am to it. I am a fully qualified Personal Trainer and quite often assume the top of the "movement" hierarchy if you will. But the reality is, I don't know shit! Don't get we wrong, I have a lot of experience, passion and learnings collected. But there are also infinite other movement practitioners with experience in different practices out there that I could learn from, that I could apply the beginners mind towards.

What is an area you could adopt the idea of Shoshin towards?

Even if you think you know, if you try hard enough, there is always something to learn.

Thanks for stopping by, and may you learn endlessly 💜

Appreciate your time, much love.

-Hunter