SD#67: Default definitions, creativity and fear of judgement
July 23, 2023
Welcome to the 67 edition of Seven Dawns, a weekly newsletter by me, Tomas Ausra, with a focus on getting better every day. A very warm welcome to the new subscribers who joined since last week. I’m glad you’re here.
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Hi friends,
Today we look at some concepts that we don’t challenge that often. Are there definitions in our lives that we just never question? Is formal schooling the only way to education? Is inspiration a prerequisite for creativity? Is perfectionism always bad? Are work-imposed hours the only way to approach our daily work? Let’s delve in.
🔎 Our seven ideas this week:
1. What are your default definitions? Since we are born, a set of defaults influences our goals, our relationships, our tastes. From fashion to friendship, many of the choices we make in life are imperceptibly constrained by default definitions. For example, the default definition of education is formal schooling. The default definition of love is monogamy. The default definition of success is wealth and power. The default definition of ageing is decline. Those default definitions are the invisible puppeteers quietly manipulating our actions and directing our lives. Fortunately, even though those are the most commonly accepted definitions, we don’t have to stick to them. To prosper in the vast liminal space that is life is to create our own definitions of what is good, not based on top-down rules dictated by society, not based on biased moral imperatives, not based on the rigid path to success we have been told to follow, not based on the expectations of our peers — but based on our intimate experience of the world. To do so, we need to turn our default definitions into deliberate questions. Instead of simply accepting the defaults that govern our lives, we can ask ourselves what we truly want and what we truly believe so we can discover our authentic ambitions. First, audit your default definitions, what are the ideas that you treat as facts? Turn them into deliberate questions, the focus of these questions should be what is truly meaningful to you. Lastly, answer each question, it’s okay to admit you haven’t figured it out yet too. 👉 Ness Labs |
2. Inspiration isn’t a prerequisite for creativity Thousands of years ago, it was believed that creativity wasn’t a human thing. Instead, it was something that deities bestowed on a lucky few individuals at random. Creative work was a ‘gift from the gods’ and if you weren’t paying attention, the idea might jump to someone else. From a scientific perspective, creativity as a habit is rooted in neuroplasticity. In short, even though our brains can learn new tricks at any age, they’re really, in fact, quite lazy. We’re constantly looking for the path of least resistance, so the more consistently we do anything, the easier it becomes. But, what’s especially cool about creativity is that it sends our brain on a positive, upward spiral. It isn’t just making us get on a hamster wheel of habit-building, but instead, helping us expand our sense of time, reality and even of ourselves. On a micro-level, being creative releases neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine that help us feel happier and more inspired to create. In a recent research study out of New Zealand, college students were asked to practice creativity for 15 minutes each day. Not only did they feel better at the moment – but the researchers found that those positive emotions lasted for over 24 hours. We know that inspiration doesn’t just strike at random, but in fact, can be cultivated through consistent, creative practice. And the more we defrost our creative brains, the more we can change our entire world. 👉 Daydreamers |
3. Perfectionism is powerful; it’s a force. Like any power, perfectionism is dichotomous in nature; it can be constructive or destructive Perfectionism is a highly nuanced, complicated, largely misunderstood concept. Its products are rewarded, its process is embarrassing, and when someone says “You’re being such a perfectionist about this,” they’re not usually paying you some kind of compliment. They’re telling you about something they think you should stop. When we think of perfectionism, we’re typically thinking of something we shouldn’t be, a thing we shouldn’t do, or what we need to correct for. But instead of seeing perfectionism as this thing that needs to be destroyed or overcome, we start looking to it as one of our superpowers and strengths. Perfectionism isn’t about getting all the dishes done, being punctual, orderly, or rigid; perfectionism is kaleidoscopic. It’s beautiful, it’s energising, it’s a fucking nightmare, it shows up in all kinds of ways, for all kinds of reasons. It can help you or hurt you depending on how you manage it. 👉 Recovering |
4. How will you measure your life? Three questions: First, how can I be sure that I’ll be happy in my career? Second, how can I be sure that my relationships with my spouse and my family become an enduring source of happiness? Third, how can I be sure I’ll stay out of jail? One of the theories that gives great insight into the first question — how to be sure we find happiness in our careers — is from Frederick Herzberg, who asserts that the powerful motivator in our lives isn’t money; it’s the opportunity to learn, grow in responsibilities, contribute to others, and be recognised for achievements. Management is the noblest of professions if it’s practised well. No other occupation offers as many ways to help others learn and grow, take responsibility and be recognised for achievement, and contribute to the success of a team. More and more MBA students come to school thinking that a career in business means buying, selling, and investing in companies. That’s unfortunate. Doing deals doesn’t yield the deep rewards that come from building up people. A theory that is helpful in answering the second question — How can I ensure that my relationship with my family proves to be an enduring source of happiness? — concerns how strategy is defined and implemented. Its primary insight is that a company’s strategy is determined by the types of initiatives that management invests in. If a company’s resource allocation process is not managed masterfully, what emerges from it can be very different from what management intended. Because companies’ decision-making systems are designed to steer investments to initiatives that offer the most tangible and immediate returns, companies shortchange investments in initiatives that are crucial to their long-term strategies. The choice and successful pursuit of a profession is but one tool for achieving your purpose. But without a purpose, life can become hollow. Your decisions about allocating your personal time, energy, and talent ultimately shape your life’s strategy. 👉 Harvard Business Review |
5. Fear of judgement: why we are afraid of being judged Athletes may fear judgement if they do not win a race, students may dread the disappointment of others upon failing an exam, and professionals may worry that a work project will be criticised. Psychologists refer to these feelings as a “fear of negative evaluation.” For our ancestors, being evaluated favourably, rather than judged for any shortcomings, would have meant a higher chance of survival. Nowadays researchers have also found that high fear of negative evaluation can have negative effects. For example, it causes a public speaker to focus on their awkward appearance or the number of long gaps in their speech whereas positive aspects of the performance, such as appearing confident or self-assured, were more commonly overlooked. In 2012, a study with experienced basketball players found that players who scored highly on fear of negative evaluation questionnaire displayed increased anxiety that translated into a significant decrease in performance in a high-pressure shooting situation. How can you manage this situation? 1) Find out more about yourself and why you feel that way. 2) Write positive affirmations to restore self-confidence and feelings of self-worth. 3) Start saying yes to situations that provoke anxiety. 4) Make a personal investment in a public speaking course, a career coach or a gym membership – whatever might instil more confidence. 👉 Ness Labs |
6. You will never see a statue of a committee If there was ever a law in advertising (or other crafts of life), it would be the following sentence – the chance of an idea surviving is inversely proportional to how many people are in the room. There is a simple reason for that. More people, more suggestions and more considerations. Invariably, these suggestions are coming from what is important to each individual. That many perspectives just give you a laundry list of things to do, rather than an idea. Or, to put it another way, you end up trying to find a needle by building a haystack. 👉 Campaign Brief |
7. How a nonlinear workday might help you get more done According to the 2022 Brain Health Report from Muse, a meditation tool provider, people with the highest self-reported brain health scores— which include memory, focus, sleep, mood, productivity, and creativity — are those who make minor lifestyle changes, like adopting a nonlinear workday, says Nadia Kumentas, a doctor of naturopathic medicine and Muse’s vice president of marketing. A nonlinear day works with your natural energy levels. People experience different energy and productivity levels at various times of the day. For example, if you’re most productive in the morning, you might want to start your day earlier than 9 a.m. to maximise those hours of productivity. Trying to force yourself into a lot of output during the back half of the day to try to do more, isn’t going to be the best use of your time, says Kumentas. The opposite approach would work for those who are most productive in the afternoon. If possible, start the workday later and use the first half of the day for less important work. 👉 Fast Company |
👨🏫 Quote of the week:
“The most important conversations you’ll ever have are the ones you’ll have with yourself.”
David Goggins
🎁 Fun things to click on:
A megathread of useful concepts you should know. Billions of celestial objects revealed in gargantuan survey of the Milky Way. Data visualisation of AI vs human chess Elo ratings over time.
Thanks for reading! If you have any learnings you’d like to share with me, or disagree with any of the ones above then do drop me a message.
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Speak soon,
Tom