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Deborah Hinote is one of the most inspiring people I have ever met. She has more connections than many can hope to attain, and makes the world a better place for everyone she knows.
Continue reading From the Inside Out with Deborah Hinote: Season 1 Episode 7
Here’s what I love most about being a teenager: it’s expected that you’ll make mistakes often. Many people give you room to grow.
However, the more open you are about your goals and dreams, the more pressure is put on you to get everything perfect.
Additionally, as you learn and succeed, people start to expect you to get everything right the first time. It’s an unspoken rule that when you master one thing, you have to master the next.
On one hand, this is extremely motivating to me. I love the pressure, and I strive to make progress every day, to reach my goals, and to succeed at what I put my mind to.
On the other hand, this makes me somewhat frustrated. It seems like a young adult can look at failure in a positive light all he wants, but it never changes other people’s opinions of his failure. They smile and wag their heads, saying “I knew it all along,” and forget about him.
As a young person who is excited about life, I plead for every teenager who is trying out new ideas:
Don’t try to stop me because you think my dreams are too big. Don’t stand in my way because I might hurt myself. And if I make a mistake, urge me to fix it and become a better person because of my failure.
Failure is an integral part of the learning process. To the people surrounding the young, passionate learners among you: Stop modeling failure as bad. Recognize that experience is one of the best teachers anyone can learn under.
Let me fail.
It’s interesting to me how kids are humans in pure form. Untouched by the biases and mindsets that adults have formed, young children can teach us a multitude of things about how to approach the world.
This is one aspect of the Module 4 curriculum I cover in this week’s video.
Praxis’ Module 4 is packed with information. And it’s some of the most thought-provoking content I will ever cover.
Here’s my take on Week 1, covering Philosophy.
There’s a thought-provoking Jewish story that I have pondered over the last while.
One night the great Rabbi Akiva was walking down the small road to his home. It was late and dark, and the rabbi was pondering Scripture as he walked along.
Focused on the text, he made a wrong turn when he got to a crossing in the road. Instead of turning toward his home, he ended up at a Roman fortress.
As he stood by the gate, the century called out: “Who are you? What are you doing here?”
Startled, all the rabbi could answer was, “WHAT?”
The century repeated: “Who are you? What are you doing here?”
This time, Akiva’s voice came back strongly: “How much do you get paid to ask these questions?”
After a shocked pause, the century responded, “Two drachma a week.” (about a day’s wage)
The great rabbi responded: “I’ll pay you double if you come and stand outside my door and ask me those two questions every morning.”
Life is complex. The complexities bog many of us down. We become focused on the details, trying in vain to find meaning.
It’s a lot more simple than we make it in our heads. Who are you? Not, what is your name? Do you know who you are?
What are you doing here? Are you doing anything? Many times obsessing over the definition of life takes us away from creating value.
What about simply making the world a bit better every day? What about focusing on being a more complete version of yourself each moment?
If you are confident in the answers to these questions, the rest of life will sort itself out.
That’s why the rabbi would have paid the century large amounts of money just to ask him those two questions.
Get back down to the basics: Who are you, and what are you doing here?
Photo by Anthony DELANOIX on Unsplash
Everywhere you go, you sell yourself.
That’s something I have heard a lot in the last little while. It’s the truth. But it’s another thing to act on it.
Everything you do represents you to another human being. Do your actions accurately reflect your values? Are you the person you perceive yourself to be?
But you don’t only embody your personal values. You represent the things you talk about.
Excited about your job? Talk about it a lot? Immediately you become the thing people reference when they think about said job.
If you support a certain viewpoint or culture, you are a model for that idea. The more you talk about it, the more this holds true.
If you say you are a Christian, for example, you are immediately the impersonation of Christianity to all around you. They will form opinions of all Christians based on your behaviors.
You can’t make everybody see you perfectly all the time. There will always be those that disagree with how you live your life.
But you can be the best version of yourself in order to represent your core ideas and values accurately.
Be intentional about your actions and ideas. Know yourself and act wisely.
I’m getting tired of the sound of my own voice. Continue reading My Voice is Frustrating Me
Many dreams don’t become reality simply because of inaction. Continue reading Not Zero; One
It’s interesting to me how much difference it makes just getting one thing done.
I had been pushing off the nitty-gritty aspects of my podcast, spending time instead focused on emails and interviews. I’m proud of what I did there, but there are still things that need to get done. Things that don’t come as easily as interviews and emails.
I need to create my MailChimp list, and have the first template ready for the release on April 1. I have to finish editing the audio for at least three episodes. I have to record the first episode for the podcast, explaining my view on education and giving helpful resources that listeners can come back to. I need to get the webpage up for the podcast, and put together a good Facebook page.
None of these things are hard in themselves. None of them take very much time when it comes down to it. But somehow, in my mind, those things got pushed to the back. Somehow I made these actions feel like a big deal.
Today, I recorded the intro for my podcast. Simple step. I added it to the intro music that Lucas Doherty, a fellow Praxian, recorded for me. I now have an MP3 file of the intro ready to go.
Just getting that one little thing done was wonderful for my perspective. Now, it doesn’t look as hard to finish the rest. Now, I know that I can complete my project by the date I set for myself. All it took was taking the first step and getting to work.
Feeling unmotivated or stressed about a project? Here’s my tip: break it down into small parts that you feel you can complete. Then, as Nike advises, Just do it.
Jewish rabbis are master teachers. They teach based on the individual. They rarely give students straight answers. Instead, they give a statement from which the answer can be inferred.
But the greatest teaching tool that a rabbi uses is the question. They believe rightly that a student who hears an answer out of the mouth of the teacher does not own the answer. Many will ask seemingly unconnected questions in order to lead individuals to find answers for themselves.
Ray Vander Laan, a teacher and an indirect mentor of mine, tells a beautiful story illustrating this point:
Insert: if she had not finished her answer with “Why?” the shop owner would have said “Ok”, and that would have been the end of the conversation. A big part of Jewish teaching requires a student to want the answer badly enough to keep seeking it out. No rabbi speaks unnecessarily.
Boom. Not once did the Jewish painter have to make a statement. The woman left the shop with a profound understanding of the owner’s attachment to his paintings. He didn’t have to go into long philosophical arguments about how he had poured his soul into each painting, and given each his best. In fact, his questions left a greater impact on the woman by connecting to her heart.
The power of the question is extremely underrated. Everyone has go to’s: “How are you?” “What’s up?” “How’s the weather?” But no one dares to ask good questions.
That is, except for children. They are full of curiosity, examining the world around them and questioning everyone that comes in sight.
What changes between childhood and adulthood? Many times children are shamed for making inquiries. That shame takes over culture, and by the time a generation of kids is grown up, we have a civilization who thinks it is a sign of weakness to ask a question.
Humans by nature like to talk about themselves. A good question directs attention toward the other person, sparking individual passions and desires. When you engage a person’s brain, he retains more information. Besides, everyone likes speaking with someone who stirs their thoughts.
By showing interest in another person’s life, you create a connection point to that person. The best conversations happen when both parties are engaged in the discussions. The more people feel you have in common, the more they will gravitate toward you.
Engaging conversations lead to strong connections. Strong connections birth ideas. That’s what relationships are all about: creating value for the world through the combined force of minds and souls.
The things can ask anyone are endless. Use these ideas to strengthen the relationships around you. Stop letting the lie of weakness quell your questions.
Many systems that are in place have traditions that have stuck for years. Many times these traditions worked splendidly at one point in the past. Other times, the trends simply seemed effective to those who set them rolling. Continue reading System Challenge
