Thursday, February 7, 2013

A Beginner's Mindset

I'm currently reading a book, 'Crafts For The Spirit: 30 Beautiful Projects to Enhance Your Personal Journey' by Ronni Lundy. The unique crafts and rituals are inspired by a variety of cultures and are designed to promote peace, harmony & personal well-being.


While reading the book, I came across a quote from Shunryu Suzuki Roshi, a Zen Buddhist monk, that got me thinking. 

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

That is so true, isn't it? When you are in the first stages of learning something new, the options seem limitless. Everything is bright and shiny and exciting. You can hardly wait to experience it all. You have no fear.

But at some point, you stop questioning the existence of new possibilities because you have grown comfortable with the skills you have and are afraid to go outside of that realm. You no longer explore or experiment with alternate ideas or techniques. You stop moving forward.

I want to try to approach everything with a beginner's mindset from now on. Not to limit myself within the self-imposed boundaries I created because they only really exist in my mind. I want to step outside my comfort zone. We should all do that, in all aspects of our life, shouldn't we?


Who knows what we may discover further down the line?

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