“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s mind there are few”
Reflections on a chastening year
2024 was a year full of turmoil and contradiction. It was a year in which I achieved and exceeded certain goals and failed remarkably to reach certain others (*cough* public speaking). It was the year I turned 40, experimented with a bunch of new experiences and learned a great deal about myself in the process. This year, out of a deep curiosity and pursuit of knowledge, I set myself a challenge to read 50 books in 2024. To the more avid amongst you, it might not seem like much, but I had never made it through 20 books in any given year.
Until now.
Today, December 31st 2024, I am proud to report that I have completed 53 books, with a further six currently in flight. Now, in the interest of full transparency, 6% of those books were paperback, 36% were e-books, leaving over 50% in audiobooks (I’m counting them). If you want to see what I’ve been reading, I’ve been tracking it here. I also list five that I recommend you read at the bottom of this post. Feel free to jump there.
It’s new years eve and my house is full of family from all over the world, so I have to steal moments to write today. In those moments I have a profound appreciation for the fact that I could make the time this year to read and I’m left incredibly thankful for the many lessons I learned in and out of books. One of the most important lessons for me is that no one really has the answers. Stay with me…
One of the things that happens when you read a few different books by various authors, experts each in their field, on the same or similar topics is that you find a lot of overlap. The other thing that happens is that you see a lot of contradiction. Even the greatest minds cannot reach consensus. Whether on the future of Artificial Intelligence, the path to product success, or the nature of human fulfilment, I have found vastly different perspectives.
First, I am ok with that. Robust discourse, framed by competing viewpoints, is the bedrock of a thriving society. The thing I learned to question, however, is the concept of conventional wisdom (and, honestly, any externally acquired wisdom). I had three key takeaways:
Randomness
The only way our minds can interpret the sequence of events over the last couple of millennia (if not accounting for a higher power*) is through randomness. If that is the case, any specific guidance, no matter how experienced or well-meaning, is not so different from sharing winning lottery numbers. To be clear, I value advice, and I’m not advocating that we go about life ignoring wisdom. For one, I can see the irony in that. I’m simply suggesting that we filter the sages through our unique set of random circumstances. The most innovative business strategies will only get you so far until you introduce your quiddity. Without you, they don’t reliably know about you.
Strong beliefs, loosely held
Reading broadly taught me that the moment we become certain about anything is the moment we stop growing. In my reading, I came across this quote from Zen master Shunryu Suzuki, “In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s mind there are few”. There are many ways to read this; for one, we value experts' ability to filter out the noise and find the signal. I chose to interpret this, though, by valuing beginnings and understanding that prior experience, old beliefs, or dogma can often prevent us from seeing new paths. What this means in practice is that while I know what I know, I do not let it define me. This leaves me open to learning something that might challenge what I already believe. I don’t reliably know.
First principles
The way I see it, the natural confluence of the two points above is a return to first principles. This does not mean we ignore wisdom or expertise. It means we hold space for the fact that life is chaos and remain humble in that reality. I allow myself to both act and observe, trusting the process but unmarried to the outcome, understanding that the journey is the purpose and that no formula exists for my life. The absence of an algorithm frees me from default thinking and allows me to break things down to the most basic undeniable truths and reason up from there.
I will concede that it is a more difficult road. Relying on the wisdom of others is a very human behaviour. One of the books I read in 2023 was “The Knowledge Illusion” by Philip Fernbach, in which he argues that we rely heavily on other people and society to fill gaps in our understanding and to shape how we act. In other words, our individual knowledge is a collective illusion. I don’t think knowing (or attempting to know) everything about everything is necessary or productive. What is essential is that we maintain an awareness of the gaps we fill with collective wisdom and frequently check where our reasoning comes from. It can lead to original insights and free us from bias and convention.
If you have stayed with me long enough to read this to the end, I appreciate you and would love to hear about your (met or unmet) goals for 2024, what you learned and what you will be aiming for in 2025. See you on the other side.
As promised, here are five books that I enjoyed, learned from or was touched by in 2024:
Africa is Not a Country by Dipo Faloyin
Supercommunicators by Charles Duhigg
Educated by Tara Westover
Rewire Your Mind: Discover the science and practice of mindfulness by Shauna Shapiro
Exponential by Azeem Azhar
and two bonus titles:
6. Radical Candor by Kim Scott is a fantastic book on leadership that I think every person who leads or has any aspirations of leading a team should read.
7. First Time Dad by Steven Burke and Ava Bell because, well, my life is about to change irrevocably. More on that in my next post.
Happy New Year!
*Note that even when you do account for a higher power, no wisdom claims to successfully navigate His/Her/Their/It’s will. The closest anyone gets is to prescribe faith and surrender.