The Beginner's Mind

The following is a guest post from John Vitek.

I came across something in personal reading the other day that gave me pause, and gave rise to an insight about our work with user-centered-design.

Shunryu Suzuki says this, “In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few.” He goes on, “This does not mean a closed mind, but actually an empty mind and a ready mind. If your mind is empty, it is always ready for anything.”

In many respects I see our efforts at user-centered-design to be the work of the “beginner’s mind.” That is, we are acknowledging that we are not “experts” or even if we do have “expertise” that our minds are open to the realities and needs of the actual user of our resources.

I also have an instinct brewing. Something in my gut tells me that we are on the brink of a break-through as a result of the site observation and usability learning we are engaging. Something tells me that we are about to discover “possibilities” we hadn’t seen before. And, that this is because we are engaging in this work with humility—an empty mind, willing to be open to and ready for anything.

Who knew we’d become little zen-masters J

May we continue on this path of beginning again, and again.

John 



John Vitek currently serves as the president and chief executive officer of Saint Mary’s Press.