Eddie, steve & a beginner’s mindset
There were no guarantees.
No proven methods or maps to follow.
No structure. No support systems. No turning back.
We were literally flying by the seat of our pants.
Packing up everything we owned, moving 1,700 kilometres west – over two days with two cars and two cocker spaniels - to a new city in a new province was both frightening and exhilarating. Swirling and twirling simultaneously. Six years later, Dana and I are grateful for the lessons from that adventure and agree we are much better for it. The new book being released next month is just one of many personal and professional achievements that would have been impossible had we not abandoned the old to welcome the new. Like a couple of crazy kids starting out, we were forced to become students all over again.
In the beginner’s mind, many possibilities accrue, but in the expert’s mind, there are few.
Shoshin (初心) is a word from Zen Buddhism meaning ‘beginner's mind.’ It reflects an attitude of openness, eagerness, and lack of preconceptions when studying a subject, even at an advanced level. It runs polar opposite to a cognitive bias that afflicts experienced individuals who assume they have sufficient knowledge to fully understand new concepts. The Curse of Knowledge dictates that the more familiar you are with a certain subject, the harder it is to unlearn and see that thing with fresh eyes.
From completely different disciplines, Eddie and Steve may be two of history’s greatest examples of what it means to have a ‘beginner’s mindset’. Steve started from a Los Altos garage. Eddie earned his stripes in a Pasadena bungalow. Last week, October 5th marked the 10th anniversary of Steve’s passing. Eddie moved on a year ago as of October 6th. Their otherworldly success can be attributed to a constant and steady diet of learning, un-learning, and re-learning.
Steve Jobs is rarely mentioned in the same sentence as Eddie Van Halen, but it’s impossible not to see the impact of a beginner’s mindset in their respective fields. To see possibilities in your future through the study of past greats, watch Eddie, Steve and a Beginner’s Mindset on Leaders & Legends.
"I didn't see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life” STEVE JOBSp.s… With a beginner’s mindset, both Eddie Van Halen and Steve Jobs were:
· Free of preconceptions of how anything really works.
· Free of expectations about any consequences.
· Free to explore with curiosity and understand their craft more deeply.
Consciously aware of it or not, Eddie and Steve opened themselves and those around them to a world of possibilities. Starting out, neither knew what was or wasn’t possible. Their professional legacies would suggest they never fell victim to the Curse of Knowledge and kept finding ways to maintain the mindset of a beginner and let their imaginations run wild. You can see for yourself when a 26-year-old Steve sat down with a television interviewer to describe the future of technology.
While Jobs disrupted personal computing, music, telecommunications, and more, Eddie Van Halen reinvented modern rock guitar through techniques such as shredding and tapping. Watch the youthful enthusiasm he displays while explaining what he discovered in his teens.
As business leaders, we always have a choice to live behind the curve or get way out in front of it. We can make choices to resist until there is no choice left. Or we can choose to adopt a beginner’s mindset. We can decide to embark on a new adventure and see what happens along the way. Put ourselves to the test and see what we learn. That’s what happened a little more than six years ago when Dana and I made ‘The Big Move’
YOUR BRAND. ON TRACK.
If now is the opportune time to create substantial Differentiation and Relevance for your brand while Re-aligning your team, perhaps you should explore a metaphorical road trip called THE BRANDING HIGHWAY. Our Executive Bootcamps serve as both journey and destination to help your brand emerge as an undeniable, undisputed, "Category of One". Impossible to describe, it helps to take a quick peek at this Video Overview:
“The most important victory is the one which has to arrive” ENZO FERRARI
PLANNING A SPEAKING EVENT?
The wheels of business turn faster each quarter and your company or industry association may be anxious to stay ahead of the lighting-fast relevance curve. In that respect, we are scheduling many in-person and virtual programs for 2022 with customized content designed to inspire conference attendees to acquire a “STADIUM-SIZED PERSPECTIVE”.
For more information on scheduling an In-Person or Virtual Speaking Program, send us a note here: bookings@gairmaxwell.com
Every week someone asks a question about our videos and more specifically our media partner responsible for the storyboarding, production, and editing. Headquartered in the shadows of the CN Tower in Toronto, Ontario, Defiant Astronaut Media is uniquely positioned to help business leaders rethink what's possible with this art form and how it can help build your brand. If you are curious about what's involved to get the proper gear to support your own video publishing efforts, here are a few ideas to get started. Click here: https://kit.co/defiantastronaut
Get daily updates and continue the DISCUSSION on FACEBOOK or visit www.gairmaxwell.com
“Every human being has a personal legend to be fulfilled, and this is our reason for being in the world. This personal legend manifests itself in our enthusiasm for the task" PAULO COELHO