Shred Academy

The Beginners Mind

By Kole

In my article “Artist Awareness,” I mention the phrase ‘The Beginners Mind,’ however I never actually explained what its definition was. I received an e-mail with a question about this and I am gearing this article towards the answer and explanation of ‘The Beginners Mind.’ I will list the question below and then my answer with an explanation of this subject. I believe it is easiest to learn the definition of ‘The Beginners Mind’ in the question/answer format. However, if anyone else is still confused or would like to learn more about ‘The Beginners Mind,’ feel free to e-mail me.

Question:

"Hello, In your article titled 'Artist Awareness' published on the Shred Academy website you mentioned the term 'The Beginners Mind' a couple of times. Would you please explain what you meant by that term? I believe I know what you mean, but, I am interested in your explanation."

Answer:

Well, I'm very glad you asked. 'The Beginners Mind' is actually a concept in Zen philosophy that deals with the frame of mind one is in, when approaching something that they could possibly learn from. This concept is shared by many different cultures, philosophies, and teachers/instructors; however it may have a different title like "Open Mindedness."

I like to define 'The Beginners Mind' as approaching everything you do (it doesn't even have to be guitar or music related) without any pre-conceptions, limits, or knowledge that will hinder you from learning about that specific subject. I will give an example of what I mean.

I remember when I bought my first guitar, I was very excited and eager to learn anything and everything about the guitar and music that I possibly could (this is the case for many beginners). I went into every lesson/practice session with the mindset that I was going to learn as much as I could and I never thought about things like "I don't play *insert genre of music here* so how could learning anything about it, be beneficial to me?" There were no boundaries or walls that were established in my mind so that I would deny learning certain things, because of my ignorant perceptions.

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This is how I define 'The Beginners Mind,' and I think it is extremely wise and beneficial to discard your ego and allow yourself to approach any possible situation with 'The Beginners Mind' and learn from it.

Website: http://www.KoleMusician.com
Contact: Kole@KoleMusician.com