Don’t Eat The Goodies If You Can’t Pay The Bill

“The more I learn the more I realize I don’t know, and the more I realize I don’t know the more I want to learn.”

Albert Einstein

“The more I learn the more I realize I don’t know, and the more I realize I don’t know the more I want to learn.”

Albert Einstein

I’ve Been Thinking. . . how much I’ve learned in these few short years on earth. I’m especially reflective on the simple experiences that taught me the most.

Learning has little to do with intelligence or talent. It has everything to do with exposing yourself to unfamiliar experiences, untapped people, and new directions. These resources arouse your curiosity, peak your interest, stretch your imagination and help create a spirit of adventure.

I stayed in a hotel recently that reminded me of an experience I had several years ago. (Keep in mind I was a young, naïve, inexperienced traveler) I made my first speaking trip to San Francisco. The flight was irregular, to say the least, and I traveled several hours without the opportunity to grab a bite to eat. By the time I reached the downtown Marriott Hotel I was famished.

This was a great hotel! They had a refrigerator in my room stocked with beverages and snacks I could enjoy. The room rates were indeed expensive enough to offer such a perk but I wasn’t expecting it. I indulged until satisfied and then made my way downstairs for a meeting with the seminar organizers. That evening I once again enjoyed a cold beverage and gourmet cookie.

When I entered my room after speaking the next day, I noticed an envelope on top of the refrigerator. Much to my chagrin it was a bill for $18.95 to pay for the goodies I had enjoyed the day before. I hadn’t seen the price sheet when removing the items, so naively assumed these amenities were free.

I learned a valuable lesson, all for less than twenty dollars (that’s a cost of one cookie these days inside of one of those money snatchers). And, as far as anyone else knew (up until now) the whole event was natural, planned, without embarrassment. Unfortunately, I just couldn’t resist telling the story.

I agree with Archibald MacLeish; “There’s only one thing more painful than learning from experience, and that is not learning from experience.” I learned from my hotel experience a lesson I have no intention of repeating.

Being naive is one way to learn but I wouldn’t suggest it as your only avenue for seeking new information and sampling the smorgasbord of life. In fact, lifelong learners are continually launching consciously planned endeavors that allow them to enjoy well rounded meals from the buffet line. They have an insatiable appetite for the “ah-hah’s” of life. Lifelong learners are just that because of their desire to expand their capacity and achieve personal mastery.

You can continue today the same as yesterday. Or you can choose to pursue a lifestyle of continual learning that ignites a fire of desire within you, and begin to experience and learn things you never thought existed. Kahlil Gibran once said, “Desire is half of life; indifference is half of death.” Desire can’t be taught. It’s a choice.

Be willing to experiment. With my lawn mower tipped on its side, I struggled to remove the blade so I could get it sharpened. I normally take the entire mower in to the repair shop to get the blade sharpened but decided I would experiment with doing it myself. Finally, when my biggest crescent wrench wouldn’t budge the nut, I slipped a pipe over the wrench handle for more leverage. No movement. Now I’m jumping on the pipe. Still no success. I’m now desperate. So, I loaded the entire mower in my car and off to the repair shop I went. My repair buddy slapped the wrench on the nut and with reasonable force loosened it.

“How did you do that?” I asked with noted frustration in my voice.
“No, problem,” he responded. “I think you were turning the nut the wrong way.”

A willingness to experiment in this situation taught me one thing and confirmed another. First, I learned what direction to turn the nut on a lawn mower blade to tighten or loosen it. Secondly, it confirmed how little I know about being a do-it-your-selfer. Nevertheless, experimentation in unfamiliar areas will always produce a lesson of value.

An old Chinese proverb reminds us that, “He who asks a question is a fool for five minutes. But he who doesn’t is a fool for the rest of his life.” Learning doesn’t always look or feel good. But you must be undeterred by feeling self conscious or appearing ignorant. Just get excited about the new found information.

An open mind allows your imagination the freedom to be your friend. A closed mind, on the other hand, is a mystery. With the restriction of nothing new going in, you can only expect stagnant things to come out.

Shunryu Suzuki, a Japanese Buddhist scholar, explained, “In Japan we have the phrase, ‘Shoshin,’ which means ‘beginners mind.’ Our ‘original mind’ includes everything within itself. 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. It is open to everything. In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities; in the expert’s mind there are few.”

Approach life with a beginner’s mind; always open and ready for the influx of fresh information. Dispense with preconceived notions. Be careful not to take familiar sights and sounds for granted. See your life through fresh eyes and a receptive mind.

Become an explorer of life. Eleanor Roosevelt advised in her book You Learn By Living, “Continue to learn and grow as long as you live. Life is interesting only as long as it is a process of growth.” You possess learning potential and growth capabilities that can only be discovered with an attitude of flexibility and willingness to exploit the gifts of information and experience.

You are living in a constantly changing world that rewards people who expand their capacities, fine tune their skills, sharpen their insights, and increase their competence. The opportunities to thrive and excel have never been better. Resources exist for you to achieve personal mastery. Dreams are achievable. Go for it! Learn something new today.

“The day that you stop learning is the day that you start decreasing your rewards and start suffering from frustration and lower levels of satisfaction.”

Brian Tracy