#TOW — Open Listener!

The other day I read a text on Business Insider about a Zen concept that influences the personal and professional development of every individual.

It is the “Beginner’s Mind” concept which has to do with the fact that we should act as beginners in every new situation, as if we didn’t know anything and liberate ourselves from predefined conclusions.

The explanation is that people who are maturing and in possession of more and more information (have more knowledge and experience) close their minds to new and not-in-their-matrix information and in this way limit their possibilities and potential to grow. Most people don’t want new information, they want validating information (James Clear). As long as we live in the system of information we have (which we’ve inherited from the elderly/others), there’s no way that we’ll be able to make a change and develop a new system which will help us move forward.

“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s mind there are few.” — Zen Master Suzuki

The beginner’s mind is open, clean and empty. It wants to suck in all information from the surrounding. It doesn’t reach any conclusions nor does it prequalify information. If you have such an attitude and philosophy toward life, you will certainly perceive a lot of things in a different way and, because of this, it will be much easier for you when making a decision.

In modern business psychology, the communication barrier, which is a counter force to the “beginner’s mind”, is called a “closed listener”. In addition to this text, there are several practical tips that follow which will help you open up during your next communication and get you closer to the “beginner’s mind” concept:

1. Learn to be silent — try it as an exercise/game. How long can you keep quiet? The next time you are with company, try to talk less. This strengthens character (you manage your ego). You listen more of what the others are saying (which leads to better understanding) and you observe (you practice empathy and body language).
2. Active listening — practice being active listeners. However, you have to understand that it is a 3 part process: listening in order to understand, processing the new information and responding (question, paraphrasing, body signals). That is a serious mental challenge. So, if you aren’t that good at it, don’t worry.
3. Begin with a YOU attitude, not I — when you start with a YOU attitude, then you will be more open to listen to the opinions and understand the emotions of others.
4. Reduce the “NOs”– at the beginning of a sentence, when you realize that you are saying NO (or NO, NO, NO…) stop and process the information that you’ve received from your interlocutor and think about the points you agree or disagree with him/her.

I wish you success with your changes!