Why the very best leaders embrace this one mindset
Zen Buddhists call it shoshin, or beginner’s mind, and it lets you take on new challenges with curiosity and openness. Preconceived notions stifle innovation.
Socrates once said that “true wisdom comes from knowing that you know nothing.” When people ask me how I’ve been able to lead organizations in such disparate industries, I always circle back to this quote and to one by Zen master Shunryu Suzuki: “In the beginner’s mind, there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few.”
I was only 30 when I got the opportunity to build a then-state-of-the-art colocation center in the heart of Philadelphia. After a partnership had gone awry, the other side (which screwed me pretty badly) shared that they had a need for a colocation center, and that if I built one, they would sign a huge contract to be my first client. I understood immediately that a signed contract with such a large enterprise would enable me to easily raise the capital needed to build the center and still make a profit in my first year, so I accepted the challenge on the spot. When I left the meeting, I Googled “what is a colocation center?” and the rest is history.
Starting a business this way might sound reckless (at the time, many people told me I was crazy), but, in truth, the decision set me on a wonderfully unlikely path that I never could have dreamed up. Instead of letting my uncertainty prevent me from seizing the opportunity in front of me, I embraced not knowing and used my ignorance to my advantage. I traveled across the country to the best colocation facilities, asking every “dumb” question along the way. By maintaining an outsider’s perspective, I was able to innovate without being limited by my expertise.
After selling the colocation company to a public company, I went on to build over a dozen more companies in industries with zero connection—except, of course, that like all businesses, their success hinged on knowing how to work with and through people. What began in 1992 as a career in law has morphed into a rich lifetime of entrepreneurial ups and downs for which I’m truly grateful. If you told me 30 years ago that I would be leading a company that invented the world’s first germ-freezing, zero-odor waste bin, I probably would have believed you, but no one else would have.
EMBRACE ‘NOT KNOWING’
Surprisingly, the English language contains no word that describes the state of not knowing in a positive light. The most often used term to describe not knowing, “ignorance,” is a dirty word that implies incompetence, inadequacy, laziness, and bad character. This is why leaders don’t like to admit their ignorance; their knowledge is the thing that’s supposed to make them worthy of being in charge. Because leadership and knowledge are romantically paired, we expect our leaders to have all the answers. This does no good for anyone.
Research shows that the overwhelming majority of leaders faced with not knowing something experience negative emotions and project negative perceptions from others. Challenging the discourse of leadership as knowledge serves to promote communication and collaboration at work; it can also reveal opportunities that previously seemed far-fetched.
Since ignorance has such a negative connotation, we have adopted concepts like shoshin, a Zen Buddhist term meaning “beginner’s mind” in Japanese to help us cope with the anxiety of life’s uncertainty. Adopting a beginner’s mindset can remove the fear associated with not knowing how to do something at work in that it positions it as purely a state of mind as opposed to a character flaw. It’s akin to embracing a childlike curiosity about the world, free of judgment.
In a shareholder letter from 2016, Jeff Bezos wrote, “Staying in Day 1 requires you to experiment patiently, accept failures, plant seeds, protect saplings, and double down when you see customer delight.” If we take this at face value, it means that Amazon became Amazon by maintaining a beginner’s mind.
LEARN FROM FAILURE
When we approach a problem with the assumption that we already know the answer, we limit ourselves and miss out on potential solutions and opportunities. When we approach a problem with curiosity and openness, it gives us the license to silence the critical voice in our heads that likes to say “no.” A beginner’s mind is open to unconventional ideas that don’t seem plausible. Thirty years ago, how many people would have pursued the wildly unconventional concept of an “everything store?” Even in hindsight, it sounds like a fantasy.
So, how can we cultivate a beginner’s mind and embrace our ignorance as a superpower? Think about it as embracing curiosity, which is the key to becoming a lifelong learner. If you approach business with what you know as opposed to asking questions and recognizing things for what they are, you will constantly fail. Instead, try to maintain a playful approach that doesn’t view failure like a punishment.
Often viewed as the effect of not knowing, failure is also a critical learning opportunity. It teaches us what doesn’t work and allows us to improve our process in the future. Failure is not necessarily the end of an endeavor. With the right mindset, failure begets success. One example is the “hallelujah moment” of the Post-it note.
The adhesive that makes the Post-it note sticky was originally developed as a failure in 1968 by 3M chemist Spencer Silver. It wasn’t until several years later that another 3M employee, Art Fry, realized the adhesive could be used to create a bookmark that didn’t fall out of his hymnal during choir practice. By embracing a beginner’s mind and being open to new possibilities, Fry was able to turn a failed product into a staple of modern life (at least before e-readers became the norm, thanks, in part to Amazon).
It can be challenging for a leader to admit what they don’t know because it reveals vulnerability, which is actually a good thing. Acknowledging our ignorance opens us up to learning from others, which builds relationships. As I’ve written before, leaders who embrace their vulnerability actually garner respect, empathy, and support, which humanizes them and promotes deeper emotional connection with their team members. The more receptive you are to feedback, the more you will get, and, in turn, the more you will learn.
Embracing my own lack of knowledge has afforded me opportunities I never thought possible. Einstein lived and worked by the words, “I have no special talent, I am only passionately curious.” So, let’s work to create a culture where asking questions, challenging assumptions, and admitting ignorance in the workplace is encouraged and rewarded. Empower your team to take risks, experiment, and try new things without fear of failure. Celebrate the process of learning and growth, not just the end result.
