Mind Sizing

"The mind of a bigot is like the pupil of the eye; the more light your pour upon it, the more it will contract."  So said Oliver W. Holmes, Jr.  I think he is talking about one kind of "mind sizing",

I think there is a dilemma here.  Let's say it is my mind we are talking about.  Too much new information, too much light, too much doubt, too much newness and my mind shrinks until I defend what I think I already know with a passion that could lead to violence.  And I do not perceive myself as a bigot.  I actively work to seek more light, more knowledge, more data and more options.

What about the person who actively seeks to keep everything the same, to look backward at only the information he/she was taught to believe?  How much "new" is too much?  Probably almost anything "new" in the way of changed perceptions will cause the mind to shrink to a pin point (or smaller).  Can such a person every grow, expand, embrace new possibilities?

Some would say, "No."  Others would say, "Yes, but not many and not quickly."  What do you think?  Leave your comment for the rest of us to ponder.

Uncertainty - Two

“Many are stubborn in pursuit of the path they have chosen, few in pursuit of the goal.”  Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche  

Not only do I have friends who are stubborn in the path they have chosen, I tend that way myself.  It’s as if I was told, “You play right field.  Stand over there.  

So, not thinking at all about the GOAL of the right fielder, I stand, game after game, where I was told the path was, not even trying to catch or stop balls that whiz by a few feet away.  In fact, if I ever knew the goal of the right fielder, I forgot it in the stubborn commitment to the path -- stand over there.  

How many pastors continue to lead their church in ways that reflect the path, not the goal?  How many business people learned a way of being a business person that no longer works, not longer achieves the goal, but, by golly, they stubbornly stay on the path while the business fails?

Uncertainty about the goal, and certainty about the “way it should be done” combine to equal failure, now or in the future.  It would be better to have a little uncertainty about the goal -- feeing my family, making a living, ending the year with a good profit or whatever, and a great uncertainty about the path -- the best method now for reaching the goal.

What do you think?  Leave a comment and let us know.

Uncertainty - One

Uncertainty and thinking often go together.  Not always.  Some people are uncertain, but do not progress to the point of thinking.  "What should I do?"  The question can lead to paralysis, not thought.  On the other hand, the question can lead to serious thinking: 

• "I could get out of this abusive relationship." 
• "I could enlist in the armed services."  
• "I could enroll in school."  
• "I could, and should, apologize."

You get the idea.  When uncertain, think.  Think on paper.  Think out loud (maybe into a recording device).  Think with someone else.  Think out loud with a group.  Think in a blog like this one. 

Move past uncertainty, where you may be stuck,. to possibilities.  Do it by thinking.  There are no guarantees that ten minutes thinking, or one hour's thinking, or even a year's thinking will lead to the "right" answer, but it beats being stuck.

What do you think?  What has been your experience?  Leave a comment and let us know. 

Creating Problems

Sometimes it's not a good idea to create problems.  "Don't rock the boat!" often means, "I will see that you don't have a job/marriage/position of influence if you stir anything up."  In some cultures it can mean, "I will see your body in an unmarked grave if you stir things up."  Syria comes to mind.
But sometimes we do well to create problems.  The railroad created a problem for canal boats and those whose livelihoods depended on them.  Air travel created problems for businesses which depended on providing land travel.  The Apple iPhone created problems for those early, clunky "cell phones" and "satellite phones" that preceded them.  And many of us have benefited. 
  How do we think, then about creating problems? 

• Creating problems might be 'bad' but might be 'good', too.
• Creating problems can be dangerous, or can provide rewards and benefits for ourselves and others.
• Creating problems comes naturally.

For instance, learning to walk creates a whole slew of problems, but most of us do it anyway and our parents and parent figures praise us.  But wow!  can we get into more trouble as walkers than we ever could as crawlers!
Even in these tough economic times we can think wisely about creating the best kinds of problems, and if we think well we will create the best kinds of problems.

What do you think?  What has been your experience?  Leave a comment and let us know.