1. **Stating the problem:** We have a square park with a side length of 40 meters. A flower bed 3 meters wide runs along all four sides of the park. We need to find the area of the park excluding the flower bed. 2. **Understanding the shape:** The flower bed reduces the length of each side inside the park by 3 meters on both sides, so the new side length inside the flower bed is $$40 - 2 \times 3 = 40 - 6 = 34$$ meters. 3. **Finding the area excluding the flower bed:** The area of the inner square (park without the flower bed) is $$34 \times 34 = 1156$$ square meters. 4. **Final answer:** The area of the park excluding the flower bed is $$1156$$ square meters.