The Beginners Mind
We often get locked into the perception that here and now it’s not the time. It’s not the content of our lifes. That there will be a better more ideal time, state, condition of internal or external self. This is an illusion. We need to shake off this impression time after time again. Ido practices a beginner mindset. You are not trying to perfect something but you try to constantly learn. He developed this unusual exercise that is about bouncing a tennis ball against a wall with fists. He said that your mind grows the most at the beginning. More neuronal connections are forming. So it’s even more beneficial to us to always choose being a beginner over being a master.
What a beautiful day to die
He said this quote in one of his film made by London Reel guy. By radically practicing a beginner mindset he doesn’t cling to his ideal self in the future and is ready to accept whatever reality serves to him here and now.
Chasing happiness makes a lot of people unhappy?
In the current society chasing happiness and success made a lot of people very miserable.
This connects with the Obstacle is The Way. Achievements are this illusions that are not fulfilling. That's why learning might be a harder and actually more fulfilling area to focus on.
- Focus on what you don’t know vs what you do. More bang for your buck there...
- Focus on what you can’t do rather than what you can. To be ‘good’ at something is totally over rated, folks.
Weird and not Liked
It’s okay to be weird. He said that he tried to be liked by all. He created his highly influential school when he understood that it’s imposibble to be liked by all.
If you train something you aren’t the best at it. If you train something and do something real with the discipline – if you reinvent it for yourself chances are that you piss off some experts in the field. It’s therefore inevitable to develop a space to not care about criticism and being liked by all the people (In the example of him being criticized and London Reel guy, who was interviewing him, who feels awkward and DIY kind of interviewer, also being criticized for not doing stuff properly)