{"id":37645,"date":"2024-04-18T21:49:59","date_gmt":"2024-04-19T04:49:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/?p=37645"},"modified":"2024-04-18T21:49:59","modified_gmt":"2024-04-19T04:49:59","slug":"when-clear-thinking-isnt-always-so-clear","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/when-clear-thinking-isnt-always-so-clear\/","title":{"rendered":"When Clear Thinking isn\u2019t always so clear"},"content":{"rendered":"

I\u2019ve been thinking a lot about the process (i.e., the time and energy) it takes to create routines that sustain positive change in our lives. This semester, we\u2019ve been reading various books that offer some helpful insight; however, just because we\u2019ve gained new knowledge doesn\u2019t mean we\u2019ve been able to apply it as wisdom in our lives.\u00a0 This is an important distinction to make, and it\u2019s been frustrating me lately as I reflect on all the real challenges I\u2019ve experienced when trying to implement the ideas I\u2019ve been collecting from our assigned reading into my daily life without adding stress. I must admit that a big part of my frustration comes from wishing I already had a system for reading and taking notes like a doctoral student,\u00a0 filtering data and making sense out of statistics, or understanding my brain so that I can make it work for me. That said, while it would be nice to be starting further along or to simply read a book and be able to practice everything in it immediately, reflecting on where I was at the beginning of the semester and where I am now, I do see change. It\u2019s been slow but it\u2019s steady, and that\u2019s where I\u2019ll choose to focus my intention, trusting it\u2019ll only help expand my growth and development as time goes on. I share this because I thought it\u2019d be interesting to use this post as an opportunity for me to explore not only what I\u2019m taking away from this week\u2019s reading but how I aim to implement the insights into my daily life.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Exploring \u201c Clear Thinking\u201d by Shane Parrish, I couldn\u2019t help but see similarities to previous books we\u2019ve read, as it provided insight into how little we often think for ourselves (especially under pressure and stress), why, and what\u2019s happening instead.\u00a0 Parrish helps us see what he calls\u00a0 \u201cThe Learning Loop,\u201d\u00a0 which describes the process by which we learn \u2013 first through experience, reflection, compression, and then action[1].He shows us not only how we operate off automatic biological responses that create conditioned habits, often moving us further away from what we truly want, but also <\/span>how to recognize when this is happening, as well as what tools we can use to leverage our cognitive ability and reshape how we navigate the space between stimulus and response.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

To Parrish, \u201cclear thinking\u201d is all about positioning, managing our defaults or the urges that get most people in trouble, and thinking independently[2].\u00a0 <\/span>In showing us how <\/span>most of life\u2019s problems result from four distinct decision \u201cdefaults,\u201d Parrish invites us to create rules for handling these problematic situations before they happen. He says that we\u2019ve been taught to follow the rules (i.e., to obey speed limits, follow tax codes, etc.) so well, and with an understanding of the consequences we\u2019ll suffer if we break them, the rules become our default[3]. When this happens, we no longer consciously follow rules but operate automatically and often without negotiation [4]. Making things non-negotiable begins to solidify them as identities central to our self-concept, and that is what many transformation experts say is the key to lasting change. I often think about this concerning my journey as a vegan. Today, someone asked me if I miss eating meat or if I ever \u201ccheat\u201d with dairy sometimes. It felt a bit odd even to engage the question because I\u2019ve been vegan so long that I don\u2019t think about it as a restriction nor frame it as a list of things I can\/can\u2019t have; it\u2019s simply a part of who I am. Parrish challenges us to question how we might use this to our advantage by creating our own set of \u201crules\u201d that our brains will follow, independent of the situation or context, and in a way that will allow them to shape a new identity, turning our desired behavior into our default behavior. To do this, we must first look at \u201cthe enemies of clear thinking,\u201d which include the following four core decision-making defaults:<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Inertia default – this takes over when we tend to do what we\u2019ve always been doing, like staying in a job we\u2019ve outgrown for too long.<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Social default \u2013 this takes over when we tend to do what others expect us to do, like saying yes when we actually want to say no.<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. Emotional default\u00a0 \u2013 this takes over when we tend to do what we have an impulse to do, like send an angry email.<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. Ego default \u2013 this takes over when we tend to seek status or be overconfident, like assuming we have the best answer or way forward. [5]<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    As Parrish went on to speak about these in more detail, offering a variety of tangible examples, I couldn\u2019t help but start thinking through various aspects of my life. I began looking for where I could spot the<\/span> potential problems of these defaults in my life, simplify things by understanding the most crucial factor in my decision-making, and slow things down by applying either As Soon As Possible (ASAP) or As Long As Possible ( A.L.A.P) thinking, depending on if it\u2019s a decision that is<\/span> low consequence\/ easy to reverse ( ASAP) or high consequence\/low to reverse <\/span>( A.L.A.P)[6]. \u00a0<\/span>As I think about creating new rules for how I\u2019ll handle each default decision or decrease the likelihood of big problems accumulating in my life, I appreciate the H.A.L.T acronym, <\/span>which stands for hungry, angry, lonely, and tired. It\u2019s commonly used in Alcoholics Anonymus to help people assess scenarios where their decision-making will be impaired ( thanks Chris!). I find this a great place to start because if I think about \u201crules\u201d to help me thrive for next semester, better sleep, more connection, and solid nutrition must be at the core. Outside of that, a few things I\u2019ll be trying on include emails and meetings only between 3-10pm, starting my days with morning pages, moving my body and being outdoors every day, drawing any intense emotions I may feel before doing anything else with them, as well as continuing the practice of writing weekly.\u00a0 Developing these into steadfast rules will take time; however, I am already getting better at practicing.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    I know there is lots to do, but as long as I\u00a0 continue making minor adjustments over the coming months, these things can and will become a part of my default lifestyle. Since so much of this begins with awareness and requires self-control and self-accountability, I\u2019ve been thinking about creating community around this journey.\u00a0 I\u2019ve just started mapping out upcoming significant decisions on my plate, looking at the most important factor to consider in each, and then asking myself what support I need to position myself to be my best each day, whether it\u2019s seeking outside counsel to provide additional perspective, or containers of accountability to do \u201cthe work,\u201d or something else altogether. Overall, I\u2019m excited to implement a more thorough safeguard strategy into my life today, and I hope you, too, will join me. <\/span>I’d love to hear the rules you’ll be trying on over the next few months so that you can be your best self!<\/span><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    [1]Clay Finck, \u201cClear Thinking W\/ Shane Parrish (TIP580),\u201d www.youtube.com (We Study Billionaires, October 5, 2023), <\/span>https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=U9SY_M5CXTo<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

    [2]\u201cShane Parrish: How to Live Life on Your Own Terms,\u201d www.youtube.com (High Performance, November 5, 2023), <\/span>https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Tvs906Gya0k<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

    [3]Clay Finck, \u201cClear Thinking W\/ Shane Parrish (TIP580),\u201d www.youtube.com (We Study Billionaires, October 5, 2023), <\/span>https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=U9SY_M5CXTo<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

    [4]Ibid<\/span><\/p>\n

    [5]Shane Parrish, <\/span>Clear Thinking<\/span><\/i> (New York : Penguin, 2023).<\/span><\/p>\n

    [6]Nathan Lozeron , review of <\/span>Insights from Clear Thinking by Shane Parrish<\/span><\/i>, by Shane Parrish, <\/span>Productivity Game<\/span><\/i>, October 15, 2023, <\/span>https:\/\/attachments.convertkitcdnm.com\/4065\/1789805d-7ea7-4010-affc-1ac3ab7b137c\/clear-thinking.pdf<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    I\u2019ve been thinking a lot about the process (i.e., the time and energy) it takes to create routines that sustain positive change in our lives. This semester, we\u2019ve been reading various books that offer some helpful insight; however, just because we\u2019ve gained new knowledge doesn\u2019t mean we\u2019ve been able to apply it as wisdom in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":209,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[3178],"class_list":["post-37645","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-dlgp03-parrish","cohort-dlgp03"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37645","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/209"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37645"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37645\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37646,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37645\/revisions\/37646"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37645"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37645"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37645"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}