The key to your future success hinges on your ability to learn how to unlearn. You must learn to unlearn everything that you have learned that is either untrue or no longer serving you. I have recently discovered that I have been sold a bill of goods my entire life.  If you pay attention to the world around, you it is easy to point to examples of what you have been taught that is not true. For example, we have been told that in order to be good at something we must start very early. And of course, there are examples of this working. Venus and Serena Williams come to mind. One might also point to Tiger Woods as another example. But there are so many more examples of the opposite being the case.  For something to be truth it must be consistent. It must always be true. Truth does not work for some and not for others.

The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn. 

-Alvin Toffler

Another premise that I was conditioned to believe was the notion of hard work. Growing up we heard the adage of hard work paying off at every turn. I heard it from teachers, parents, and other adults and authority figures in my life. You hear successful people say hard work pays off. And maybe it did pay off for them. Maybe it did pay off for LeBron James. Maybe it did pay off for Oprah Winfrey. But do we really consider playing basketball and hosting a television program hard work? There are certainly people who work much hard and yet there has been no payoff and certainly not a reward on the same level as entertainers and athletes. 

I have come to the realization that this is utter nonsense. I grew up watching many from my neighborhood work extremely hard only to get nowhere fast. I don’t think anyone would argue that those that were enslaved Americans worked very hard. Where is their reward? What about those that do physically challenging work such as construction work or window washing on the 42nd floor of a skyscraper in New York City? 

A few years ago, my niece asked me the following question. She said “Uncle Kai, if you were to tell me one thing that you think is the key to success. What would you tell me?”. My response to her was to tell her to learn all that she could about spirituality. I also gave her a list of my favorite books on the subject.   

It is important to point out that she ignored my advice. Probably because she dismissed it because she thought my advice to pursue spirituality meant religion. Which I did not. Or perhaps she felt that how could studying practices such as yoga or meditation have anything to do with being successful. Why would she believe me. Nothing in her formal education would give her any reason to think that what I was offering was true. 

And this is what I mean by cultivating your ability to unlearn.

This has happened to me on many occasions. I try to encourage people to learn about the truth of how life works. I say this because what you have been taught about how life works is false. And this is precisely why you are not getting anywhere. And I am usually met with “thinking positive thoughts is all well and good but I still need to pay my rent.”  Or “Just because I ignore my problem that won’t make it go away. In fact, it does. And what you think has everything to do with what you experience in your life. And studying spirituality can help you to understand why. And once you understand why and start to embrace the truth your life will change.