The Benefits of Knowing Nothing

I was recently offering a talk about living in the moment and maximizing joy in our lives. When I shared that I live from the belief that "I know nothing," this drew perplexed looks from the group, and they chimed back, "but you're the expert!" "that's not true!" and "you know a lot!"

And I responded that knowing nothing was exactly how I have come to learn, experience, and understand so much in my life, especially in the last 7 years as I’ve studied and trained through the Modern Mystery School. Because I stopped attaching my value and worth to what I know.

For a full cup has zero potential to be filled. But an empty one? An empty cup holds ALL the potential to be filled.

For if I believe I know it all, as I used to especially when I was in college and grad school, then I forgo any room to learn and grow. I eliminate any space to receive what others may have to share with me. I create a rigid mind and worldview that would rather assimilate new information, thought patterns, and ideas to conform to what I already know rather than allowing what I know and what I don’t know space to exist freely side by side.

And through knowing nothing, that formula gets reversed.

Because none of us know everything. There's always more to learn as we fill our cup and there's always more to unlearn as we empty it. There will always be more opportunities for us to learn from one another and help each to grow if only we choose to listen to one another with more compassion and desire to connect and less judgment and desire to divide. There will always be deeper truths to bring to light. But none of that will happen from attaching ourselves to keeping a full cup.

So when I say "I know nothing," I'm not putting myself down or underestimating myself. On the contrary, I'm lifting myself up and affirming my belief in my ability to rise to the challenge and know more every day than I've ever known!

Because I never want to stop learning, growing, and connecting with others. For through that, I am in the flow of what brings Joy to my life and serves me to the best, most authentic version of me. Knowing nothing serves me to continually peel back the layers of what it means to be the best Guide, Healer, Teacher, and Human Being that I can be. And through that, I can then share my best with others and serve them, as well, to navigate their own journeys of becoming the best, most authentic versions of themselves that they can be!

And I’ve found personally that that Joy is maximized, not in ruminating on the past or fixating on the future, but in giving ourselves permission to exist more fully and wholly in the moment. To be more present and clear with yourself and thus, more present and clear with others. For all the blessings of this life and this world are all here, right now, all around us. But are you creating room to receive them? Are you letting them pass you by? Will you even realize that they're there at all?

I used to consistently reject life's gifts and opportunities by being a know-it-all and keeping my cup full at all times. But now I know better, so now I don't. Now I choose to create space to receive the abundance of life’s blessings, lessons, and opportunities to grow, strengthen, and heal gratefully and be more and more present to the gifts of living life in the moment. And I do so through joyfully committing to knowing nothing.