5 Ways to Cultivate Beginners Mind

written by Diana Domingo

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1.) Open to Exploration. Allow yourself the enthusiasm to simply try something you have been wanting to try. It doesn’t have to make sense or be your highest goal. JK Rowling started with one word on a page that began the unforgettable magical world of Harry Potter. Even with 15 items on your 2022 New Year’s Resolution list, choose the one that calls to you first and take one small step toward it. Make that call, put on your shoes as if you are going to exercise (even if you don’t), sign up for that art class, or clear out a corner of a room to begin your practice. You can always change your mind.

2.) Allow yourself to be Surprised. Open your mind to the possibility of a new way of being. Upstate musician and guitarist Scott Collins said, “I think of beginnings as improvisation. When I am approaching a new piece of music, I leave expectation out of the way and set up situations where I surprise myself. I start by trying new things. I leave analysis at the door.”

3.) Approach everything you do as a Beginner. Regardless of how experienced or knowledgeable you are, every day is a new beginning. Eating breakfast or putting on your clothes can even be looked at with newness each day.  When we are able to approach life in this way – with the concept “I have something to learn here” or “I don’t really know everything about this,” we gain humility, new insight and fresh perspectives. We are able to enter the realm of our imagination and a new level of consciousness. This is where creativity begins. This is where the world of vision and innovation resides.

4.) Allow yourself to tune into your excitement about something you want. Allow fear and excitement to walk side by side. Don’t try to get rid of your fear prior to starting something. Simply allow yourself to tune-in more to the excitement about your goal versus the fear. They can exist simultaneously and when recognized in this way, fear won’t stop you and excitement will be able to take the lead.

5.) Go back to Step 1 and Begin Again.