Grant says he'd " . . . love to see more people do their rethinking out loud, as FDR did. As valuable as rethinking is, we don't do it enough--whether we're grappling with the pivotal deicisons of our lives or the great quandaries of our time. Complex problems like pandemics, climate change, and political polarization call on us to stay mentally flexible. In the face of any number of unknown and evolving threats, humility, doubt, and curiosity are vital to discovery" (250).
With Grant's wis for all of us in mind, initiate some "rethinking out loud" in the comment box below. We're not looking for finished results and new conclusions. We're looking for the first step in a re-evaluation. Consider "a pivotal decision of your life" or "a great quandary of our time." You might want to use phrases like "I have always thought [x], but now, I'm not so sure . . ." What questions are you debating or mulling over? If you're not currently do this, you might want to use this exercise to start.
The challenge here is to check something your actively thinking about, something you're trying to figure out for yourself, not something you've already figured out.
I have always thought that I can balance graphic design with writing, but I'm not so sure because even though I have had all the time in the world to write this summer, I haven't been. I don't know if this makes me lazy or if the thought of finishing a novel just scares me. I think that maybe I'm putting too much pressure on myself when I write. It's just a draft and it doesn't have to be perfect, or even good.
ReplyDeleteLauren George
This is just a personal query for me, but I always thought the more money you made the better off you'll be. Growing up in a very low socioeconomic class, money was a luxury to us. I always thought the bigger your back account, they better you were objectively. Going through life I have found this to be the biggest lie I ever thought. From a young age, I knew I had a love for math, music, and people. Talking to many people, I found out computer science was a field that made a lot of money. Once I found this out, which is when I was in 4th grade, I set my mind to studying computer science once I hit college. Fast forward to when I start college. I started my first computer programming class , and that it was hard, but I just HATED what I was doing. I didn't get any joy out of it. I thought "Am I going to really study this for the next four years of my life?" After this I was in a stuck position. I can't do music, there's no money in it. I think I knew deep in my heart I wanted to study music. I decided to chase my love of people and go into a public service. I worked and received my nursing license. After working in a COVID written world for the last year, I was ready to advance into someone bigger in the public service world, but music was still in my heart. After many conversations and praying, I decided to go for my music degree. It was would bring me the most happiness. I came to realize, whatever I do, I want to be happy and glorify God while doing it. Deciding to study music, so far, is one of the best decisions I have made. Nothing gets me more happy or excited than the thought of learning more about something I love so much. After all of this though, I think the best thing I take away from this is my journey to coming to this realization. If I hadn't done all I did in my life, and met the people I did, I would have never brought myself to take up music. I think the thing I want anyone who reads this takes away is, appreciate your journey, you may not be where you want to, but I can ensure if you have a passion for it, you'll achieve whatever you want too, and be so happy while doing it!
ReplyDeleteI have always thought that climate change was a problem that society could tackle as a whole, but now I am not so sure. I have been recycling since I moved to Ada, I do not use plastic straws anymore, I carpool when I can, and I even keep my thermostat at a warmer temperature than I am used to, so I am not contributing to mass pollution. As time goes on and the state of the Earth continues to decline, I am starting to believe that this is an issue that the average citizen is not capable of controlling. This seems to be an issue that only large corporations and billionaires have any control over. This does not mean that average citizens should not do their part in stabilizing the current pollution issues we are facing, however, I am starting to believe that it will not be enough.
ReplyDeleteThis situation is especially difficult as an ordinary citizen. With large conglomerates and corporations contributing a significant portion in changing the climate, simple daily recycling and biking to work, for example, seem trivial. In this current situation, the actions of the ordinary individual cannot outweigh the actions of the group. Ultimately, why alter your lifestyle to live more environmentally-friendly when whatever good you create is instantly nullified by a coal plant?
DeleteThis - along with expansions of harmful practices, despite being known as so - has spawned a relatively common mentality that nothing can be done by the average citizen, further creating a cycle in which climate change increasingly gets worse.
- Luken Sloan
I am not the best singer, as my family members would likely protest (except for my mom, she seems to think I am perfect in every way--bless her heart). I have always wanted to be a good singer, however, but learning to sing has always seemed like an impossible task to me. For as long as I can remember, I have thought that individuals are just born a great singer, or they are not. But the more I have heard people talk about it and thought about it myself; the more I begin to doubt my belief. Perhaps the concept is not so clear-cut, maybe some people are born with near-perfect voices while others must work at it to get the same effect (just like in so many other things in life). I still have more to learn about the concept, but even having doubts gives me some hope that I might be a good singer one day.
ReplyDeleteI’m going to be very vague for this post because it is a very personal decision. That may slightly defeat the point of the exercise, but the rethinking process started very recently for me, and I’m not ready to actually tell anybody. Ever since I was a kid, there was an event in my life that I was always expected to do someday. I’ve never necessarily wanted to do it, but I always knew I would someday in the future. Unfortunately, that time is now. I haven’t made any type of final decision about it (so don’t ask) but a few days ago I had the thought of “I need to make this decision for myself. I have to ignore the expectations I’ve had my entire life, and make the decision based on what is best for me, in my situation now.” I hope that once I make a decision, whichever way I decide, I will be confident that I opened my mind up to “think again”, and that my decision was mine alone. I can tell you guys that the almost instant emotion of allowing myself to rethink, was a great feeling.
ReplyDelete-Michael Draper