What’s up my guys and gals!
Recently I have been feeling that the society for a wonder’ing mind has wandered a little from its roots… which is fine because wondering and wandering is what this whole thing is about. But, with that being said I think you can overdo it on the self-development side of things when it comes to thinking about it and even writing about it… so this week I will be launching a new format which is a bit more rapid-fire.
Numero Uno
First off is a personal anecdote from my week which got me thinking and hopefully will get you thinking as well.
We all know about a certain something that is currently being pushed on the masses for better or for worse (we can make our own minds up about which we think it is but I think we can all agree on the pushing aspect). Anywho what struck me this week was the sheer vastness in the interpretation of this situation and the different conclusions that individuals arrive at. Within the space of twenty-four hours I encountered two different medical professionals who I know personally and have a ton of respect for and they each at almost totally opposite takes on that which must not be mentioned. The one affirmed that participating in this push was the single biggest thing he had done to save lives through the entire duration of his career in healthcare and implored any “non-compilers” to reconsider their choice, while the other strongly cautioned me as to very clear and potential dangers and risks from his point of view saying that to “participate” would be to freely choose to compromise my health in known and unknown ways with no clear benefit.
I would consider both of these people to be very smart, well researched, and to be actively seeking the common good, so what gives??
Well, I don’t really know what gives but the conclusion I came to is that we vastly underestimate the personal subjectivity that informs our positions and stances. People love to talk about science and studies but I honestly think that such things account for very little of why we do what we do, think what we think, and say what we say.
To me, this is the only explanation that really makes sense when it comes to the levels of dissonance that are displayed everywhere you look and listen.
When I was thinking about this I jotted down the following notes to send to a friend, so please forgive me while I quote myself,
“I had this thought this morning that science might inform far less of our decisions than we might like to believe.
These numbers are arbitrary but I would say that it’s maybe 10% “science” and 90% personal narrative, perception, and belief system. We are just way too driven by our biases I think, and that’s before you even get to how hard it is to isolate variables in studies in what not. The amount of nuance is staggering. And then there’s the fact that we can only look back in time and not forward, so we can see huge positives for our progress but then a decade later we see all the consequences… So the best we can do is sort of poke our way forward I suppose doing our best with what we have…”
At the end of the day, we don’t know what we don’t know… which is an interesting thought to reflect on.
Well, Whatcha think? Let me know! Obviously, this is part of a much larger discussion with context and all that stuff but those are my current musings.
Numero Dos
My weekly tip to be more creative
I believe that after love creativity is our greatest asset when we create we become more like the God who made us and we mirror his creation of us which makes us live more in his image and in turn, makes us happier, wholer and holier persons.
There are no, “not creative” people, and anyone who thinks of themselves like this is just thinking about it the wrong way. So here is this week tip for being more creative:
Go make something, anything. If you don't know what to make, make a cake, or make your bed just put your own spin on it. If you are a little more adventurous make a handmade card for someone you love, write a letter, a poem a song, make a fall bouquet, make some music, or carve a stick. Or maybe you have something you have wanted to make for a long time, a video, a recipe book, a blog, a memoir, a slideshow, give yourself permission to make a bad version of it.
If you feel so inclined send me a picture of what you make! And I will include a picture of what I make in next week’s letter.
Numero Tres (I have no idea if I am spelling these French/Spanish (Spanish I think) numbers right, sorry mum!)
A side hustle idea you can start today
Put up an ad for doing Christmas lights, its that time of the year you could probably make a few hundred bucks at it depending on the job… (I did this for a guy last year)
Numero Quatro
Person or thing that inspired me this week.
If you have not seen this Ted Talk by Sr. Ken Robin go watch it right now. It is the most-watched Ted Talk of All Time and I have watched it multiple times and am currently listening to his audiobook The Element and it is engrossing.
Watch it here Do Schools Kill Creativity
Numero Cinco (almost spelled that one with an S)
Song I’m loving right now.
Loving this song right now and you might too
“ Do Not Let You’re Spirit Wane” - Gangs of Youths - shout out to my brother-in-law Joe Witney for the introduction.
Ta Ta for now folks let me know what you think of the new format just trying it out for now!
Hey! Is your life at all better for getting this newsletter? Or maybe it’s worse. Either way, if you want to share that experience with someone else please take the time to pass this on to one or two other people in your network or fam.
Much love,
Ben