An interesting correlation: college students who score highest on tests for courage are also least likely to cheat. I like that connection. The non-cheaters are the ones who are spunky enough to travel under their own steam.
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Tuesday, September 02, 2008
Getting Me to Do Right
Boldness is everything, at least on this blog. For me, all other virtues fall under this label.
I realized that when I decided what I wanted to write today: this weekend's big "bold" move. It was not going kayaking when thunder started rolling.
That might seem to be simply a reasonable decision (not to mention a reflexive one) rather than bold.
But I had my boat pumped up (as you see) and ready to go. I was pretty pumped up about getting out there myself. I was so tempted to go out for a few minutes anyway.
I'd heard one little rumble a while earlier, but decided it was an anomaly. Then I saw boats start coming off the lake just when I was starting to push in. One guy was wading ashore to get his car and trailer. "Did you hear thunder out there?" I asked him.
"I sure did," he said. "Some real slappers. My daughter said, 'Get me out of here.'"
So I pulled the plugs, deflating both kayak and would-be paddler.
This might seem like elementary wisdom, rather than boldness. But if I thought of it as wise or reasonable, I might not be persuaded, since wisdom can seem rather tedious to a late-middle-aged adolescent like me. If instead I think of the necessary, wise, and reasonable choice as bold, then it's easier.
Does that make sense? I'm simply making the right choice and coding it as "bold." This could work for a lot of things, I now realize. The technique definitely has possibilities: i.e., only the truly bold individual finishes returning all her phone calls today.
Parents use this sort of thinking with children: "only big girls get to...make up their own beds..."
Well, I'm starting to see the potential for using it on myself. For an artist, or anyone self-employed or working at home, skills of self-management, however seemingly silly, are crucial.
If you like this post, please bookmark it on del.icio.us, share it on StumbleUpon, vote for it on Digg. Thanks so much.
I realized that when I decided what I wanted to write today: this weekend's big "bold" move. It was not going kayaking when thunder started rolling.
That might seem to be simply a reasonable decision (not to mention a reflexive one) rather than bold.
But I had my boat pumped up (as you see) and ready to go. I was pretty pumped up about getting out there myself. I was so tempted to go out for a few minutes anyway.
I'd heard one little rumble a while earlier, but decided it was an anomaly. Then I saw boats start coming off the lake just when I was starting to push in. One guy was wading ashore to get his car and trailer. "Did you hear thunder out there?" I asked him.
"I sure did," he said. "Some real slappers. My daughter said, 'Get me out of here.'"
So I pulled the plugs, deflating both kayak and would-be paddler.
This might seem like elementary wisdom, rather than boldness. But if I thought of it as wise or reasonable, I might not be persuaded, since wisdom can seem rather tedious to a late-middle-aged adolescent like me. If instead I think of the necessary, wise, and reasonable choice as bold, then it's easier.
Does that make sense? I'm simply making the right choice and coding it as "bold." This could work for a lot of things, I now realize. The technique definitely has possibilities: i.e., only the truly bold individual finishes returning all her phone calls today.
Parents use this sort of thinking with children: "only big girls get to...make up their own beds..."
Well, I'm starting to see the potential for using it on myself. For an artist, or anyone self-employed or working at home, skills of self-management, however seemingly silly, are crucial.
If you like this post, please bookmark it on del.icio.us, share it on StumbleUpon, vote for it on Digg. Thanks so much.
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