Stubbornness and ignorance and determination are a very fine line from each other. I'm a very stubborn person, but not so stubborn that I can't learn new things and meet new people, but I have a one-track mind.

Stubbornness with permission to learn

There's something almost refreshing about admitting you're stubborn instead of pretending you're just "committed" or "focused." Most of us spend energy rebranding our harder edges, but stubbornness is really just determination with nowhere good to aim yet. The tricky part—and what Joe's getting at—is knowing whether you're holding firm on something that matters or just digging in because you've already decided. The difference isn't always obvious in the moment.

The real skill he's describing isn't eliminating stubbornness; it's pairing it with curiosity. You can be absolutely locked onto your goals while still being willing to update how you get there or who you let in along the way. It's the person who insists on their vision but listens to better routes. Meanwhile, someone stuck in pure ignorance doesn't even know they're stubborn—they're just going in circles without noticing.

What makes this practical is recognizing that your one-track mind isn't automatically the enemy. It's actually what gets things done. The question worth asking yourself regularly is whether you're on the right track and willing to veer if the evidence suggests you should. That's not weakness. That's the only way stubbornness becomes something useful instead of just expensive.