Shoshin is the Japanese Zen term for a "beginner's mind' and refers to a paradox: The more knowledge you have on a subject, the more likely you are to close your mind to further learning.
Having an academic degree in a subject can lead people to overestimate their knowledge. Studies showed that graduate participants frequently overestimated their level of understanding.
Even feeling like an expert also breeds closed-mindedness. Research also showed that giving people the impression that they were relatively expert on a topic led them to be less willing to consider other viewpoints.
Creativity is a surprising process. Left unchecked, too much application of prior knowledge can stifle innovation and hinder creative work. "Not knowing" can be your most important asset if you can use it to your advantage.
The element of surprise is something creative professionals do not have in their radar, as they are having the ‘constraints’ of knowledge, expertise, skill and past experience to s...
Creativity becomes a moving, living thing when it is set free, and one has to incorporate multiple perspectives and ideas to foster and nurture the plant, facilitating the blossoming of something unique and truly innovative.
Ignorance is not an enemy, and it helps to shake yourself out of the plan and build something out of a unique flowering, where knowledge can be a hindrance.
When we start something with a preconceived notion, we stifle any creative process. An open-mindedness combined with a willingness to experiment can provide us with a pleasant surprise in the final outcome, as we embrace the unexpected and are open to where the process takes us.
The unknown territory is to be reached in our path towards being creative when our expertise fails to hinder our experiments.
Conferences are an overwhelming rush of presentations, conversations, and potential meet-ups, and it can be tough to know where to focus your time. How do you figure out which sessions to attend? Should you skip the keynote to meet an important contact? How many coffee dates are too many?
Conferences are overwhelming: the rush of presentations, conversations, and potential meet-ups, and it can make it tough for you if you want to find focus.