The construct and perception issue was very interesting to me. Many times life is all about the way we perceive a thing. I thought the analogy about the two shoe salesmen in Africa was awesome. I shared it with my class. I found myself wondering how much of my own unhappiness I contribute to by not having a healthy perspective.
I was reminded of the Matrix movies when I read the “Its All Invented” section. Creating the construct to suit our needs seems to be such a simple solution. It makes sense. In the movie Neo had to first get past his “in the box” thinking to achieve greatness.
I was drawn into the comments on the pathology that the book addressed dealing with the rationale for our decisions. It is true that many of our decisions are based on rationale and not on the true reasons for our motivation.
This book is extremely insightful. I have not thought in terms of the way we collectively see the world in the ways this book highlights. It is very true that through the various scientific eras we have been adding to our global paradigm (page 13).
In my opinion learning to recognize the world of possibility by identifying the measurement world was brilliant. It is very hard not to think in terms of measurement world limitations. Recognizing this makes you long for a world where that is not an issue- the world of possibility.
The process of “giving an A” was very profound. I have tried to teach my students to recognize the best in each other but this takes it to another level. I feel empowered to grow with even more people who come in my life now. The World of Possibility is a place I would like to spend a lot of time in.
Terrance, I agree that the book is an eye opener when it comes to identifying how we tend to box in our perceptions of the world with preconceptions and measurement. I would say that nowhere is this more apparent than in education but in reality it happens in life in general and occurs in all fields of human endeavor, even the arts. Measurement is the way we judge and put value on things, I think it’s our job as teachers to try to balance or buffer the interaction between the world of measurement and the possibility that exists in each of our students. Maybe we can give each of our students an “A” mentally in our own minds and in the minds of each of our students. I don’t know but I’m going to give it a try.
ReplyDeleteExcellent comments on the Art of Possibility, Terrance. The text resonated with my typical view of life, but it challenged me to continue in this method of thinking. Life is perfect. :)
ReplyDeleteEspecially in times of stress, we retreat to the survival mentality which may blind us to the myriad of available options. It can definitely be challenging not to think in terms of measurement, especially in the field of education. I teach math, so measurement is an integral part of my world. However, for some odd reason (I blame and thank my parents), I've never felt confined by the box. I've always challenged conventional wisdom and enjoyed the opportunity to find new ways of doing things.
Life is what you make it. Thank you for the great post!
Amanda McGhee
Hello Terrance,
ReplyDeleteI am humbled at how clearly and thoughtfully you combed through the text.
Your mind is very clear.
So far this book is reaffirming the way my parents have raised me and the way I try to continue to live each day. I have grown up being told by my family and teachers saying that I can be whoever I want to be and do whatever I wish; it's up to me. My motto has been "If it's meant to be, it's up to me." I attempt to instill this in my students as well.
ReplyDelete@Terrance
ReplyDeleteI too loved the tale of the two guys who went to Africa to market the shoes. I found myself thinking back to it this weekend, as I had to go out of town to a wedding in a place I had never visited before. On Friday afternoon we checked into our hotel, which was supposed to be hands down the nicest in the area, and every time we turned around we were finding problem after problem, in a newly remodeled hotel no less. After having maintenance come to our rooms for the third time in 2 days we met with the maintenance manager, and we presented him with our revised perspective of the situation. His department was not to blame with the problems that we were finding, as they were always so quick to respond to them and to remedy them. The problems lay in two areas, first with the crew that did the remodeling in the first place, and secondly with the housekeeping staff for not letting the maintenance department know that these problems existed in the first place so that they could have been remedied sooner. This intern led to a complete revision of housekeeping policy (or so we were told), and a newfound respect on our part for the hotel.
Insightful post Terrance - I too thought about the shoe salesman story and the Matrix while combing through the text... Great minds... :)
ReplyDeletePerception is everything. I got a big dose of this last weekend. I entered into a 24 hour film fest where you had to script, storyboard, shoot, slice and score a short piece in 24 hours time.
Going into it I knew I had a lot of stiff competition - there were Full Sail film students out the whazoo. That said, I was looking at the challenge as a great learning opportunity, instead of a competition. So when 11:30pm rolled around and a full day of production yielded less than stellar results, I was still over the moon happy with the experience because I learned so much.
In the end, I was able to pull something together, but this was a great example of how sometimes life is more about the journey than the destination.
Cheers.