Sharing and Thinking at a Deeper Level

Alec Couros and I were talking the other day and I was reminded of a post I have been wanting to do about deep thinking, sharing and action. We originally connected to talk about a new project PLP is sponsoring, a virtual Institute for Higher Education, which Alec will lead, but it took us awhile to get to that part of the conversation. Why? Because we were sharing strong ideas and passions about education, leadership, change, and human nature. Alec said something that got to me– I am paraphrasing here, but he said something to the effect that these are the kinds of conversations (the one he and I were having at the time) that need to be brought out into the open.

I was talking about how Powerful Learning Practice’s (the company I co-founded with Will ) mission  is to build capacity- it is about connecting people with great ideas to other great people with great ideas as a way of helping them connect and collaborate to make an even better idea that will change learning and education. Alec and I discussed how PLP is about building the capacity of individuals to lead change. That PLP is about promoting others to chase their passions as a way of helping to change education and make it a better place. That PLP is about leveraging community and networks as a way of connecting to ideas and initiatives bigger than ourselves in an effort to truly transform education and empower children and their mentor teachers. PLP feels it is a win-win to help others reach their professional goals and chase their dreams and passions for making the world a better place– both inside and outside the organization.

Time to Dream-Think-Vision
These are the kinds of conversations that are missing – deep, thoughtful conversations that help shape our models and constructs.  Part of the problem is the culture of how we interact online. We need a culture shift already in the 21st Century. While networking and making connections has its place, it is only the beginning. It is through the forming of deep relationships that trust develops. And out of that trust comes community. And out of community comes deep thought and hard, messy conversations. And out of those conversations comes innovation, action, transformation- and meaningful, lasting change. But all of that takes time. Time that many either aren’t willing to invest or simply do not have.  I recently asked my Twitter Network about this idea of not enough time and there were some pretty interesting responses.

“I challenge teachers to replace, “I don’t have time to…” with, “I don’t value…” or “… Is not important to me.” @np_coach

“Isn’t time an excuse for cognitive dissonance?” @rickweinberg

If something is important enough to us, if it fits in with our value and/or belief system then we make time.” @Katiemc827

“We all have enough time, it’s what we choose to do with it that determines whether it comes dressed up as our friend or our enemy.” @joegartrell

“You make time for the things that are priorities to you. it’s not “finding time,” it’s honoring your priorities.” @mft77

How often do you spend time in deep thought and then bring those thoughts to a community of learners with whom you are vested for reshaping and push back. How often do you just let yourself dream and play with ideas? How much time do you have alone to just think and observe and study? In the blogosphere I think we often take ideas of others and recycle them without much thought to how they work or do not work. And rarely do we ever think about  the outcomes of our actions on life as we know it.

For example, today I was thinking about how You Tube and fast, easy connections to experts/mentors via technology has impacted the role of parents in the lives of their teenage and young adult children. Everything from how to apply makeup, fishing tips, how to get a job, parenting etc is transferred from computer to child rather than parent to child. I am not suggesting that this is a negative or a positive– but rather it is an outcome we haven’t thought about much and there are many more aspects like this that need thought and debate. Imagine intelligent, creative educators getting together and saying there has got to be a better way to do this– and then after figuring it out- changing it.

Deep Intentional Thinking
I like to take a complex idea I am working with and try to describe it in the most detail possible. Then I describe it aloud, to a listener, whether a live listener or to the potential listener represented through those who are reading my blog. As I describe in detail what I am perceiving I always understand more and more. It’s like I am manipulating the ideas in a physical sense.  I also like discussing ideas with others to develop a common language, a common way of looking at an issue. But I have to tell you- it is RARE that I get someone who has the time, interest or tolerance for going deeply in a philosophical discussion. And yet, I believe that thinking deeply and then having hard conversations with others about your constructs is what really allows for the greatest insight and innovations.

Albert Einstein used a technique for deep thinking, which he referred to as “thought experiments.” It was essentially the practice of relaxing and setting a visualization in motion while watching it closely to see what might be discovered. He imagined himself riding a beam of light in this way, which lead to the Theory of Relativity. A quick Google Search will reveal that there are lots of different exercises for thinking deeply- like this one.

Driving the point home, I like these quotes from a Harvard Business Review piece I was reading on critical thinking,

“… what rises to the top levels are very productive and very diligent individuals who tend not to … reflect and are extremely efficient at deploying other people’s ideas,” implying that this type of leader is not likely to understand, encourage, or recognize deep thinking in others.”

“… managers are not trained for it.”

“Time-for-thinking is a special moment which can be resource consuming and an unsafe activity …”

“There’s a name for managers who think deeply–entrepreneurs … Big companies are no place for big thinkers.”

“Providing time to reflect, particularly in an era of multi-tasking and the tyranny of technology, was most frequently suggested as an antidote to the dearth of deep thinking. As Chris Shannon put it, “I think creatively better out of the office, say while out in the boat or at a conference, so that looks very much like not working!”

The first quote makes an important point I think. One that is revealing in terms of why so many people are talking but very little is changing. This is best illustrated in David Logan’s tribal leadership concept.
David talks about the 5 stages of tribes (groups of like minded people based on experiences and interests) and how leaders can influence them. I love what he says about stage 3.  I’m great and you’re not. Meaning that most of us are so busy knowing and doing what we know and do that we miss the opportunity to see what could be if we looked at our ideas in a systemic way connected with what others know and do. What if we took a “None of us is as good as all of us mentality?” What if you and I spent a week taking what we know– our experiences and applying them to a problem or possibility. What if we invited a few smart friends over and using our diverse, unique backgrounds built on the ideas of each other. If we did I know we would be much further along to developing meaningful ideas for transformational change in education.

So– what you doing this summer? Want to spend a week together  imagineering and thinking deeply?