Reviewing what the dog saw...
Malcolm Gladwell writes mind-blowing books. The type of book that you can easily read through in one day. Once you start you just can't stop. I usually try to hold on, slowly reading, digesting bit by bit in between chapters, but before I even realise it I reach the last page.
The most recent book in his collection is: "What the dog saw." In this book he aims to find out how people think. He analyses different areas of life from the ketchup business, dog psychology to investments all with the goal to find out how people working in these industries approach what they do.
In his chapter on understanding secrets he refers to two approaches to the unknown. The approach to a mystery vs. a puzzle. If you approach the unknown or a problem as a puzzle your aim would be to collect more information to solve the problem. Every bit of information is a piece in the puzzle. Once you have enough pieces the puzzle is complete. You can see the picture. Problem solved.
Approaching a problem as a mystery is a lot more uncertain. Here you usually have too much information. You have to sift through the information, trying to make sense out of it. You want to see a pattern. You have to link bits and pieces together to form a picture. In the case of a mystery there is no picture - you have to create it as you go along.
In his book he applies these concepts to a military intelligence scenario. He looks at how these different approaches can lead to different outcomes when applied to the same scenario.
During our Stricker family festival Mario's cousin Liezel spoke about their 10 year plan. Her husband, John made them write down their 10 year plan. They forgot about it.
When they moved to Japan recently they came across the forgotten piece of paper while unpacking.
It gave me goose bumps when she said that to their surprise and shock the place that was written next to 2010 was Japan. They did not even remember that they have written Japan down as a place that they would like to live in. But they ended up there. In their subconscious they were steered towards that destination.
It is almost as if their destiny has become a puzzle - a picture already photographed, with the missing pieces falling in place as time passes.
So often life feels more like a mystery. We try to figure out where we want to be, believe we can achieve through analysing the current available information. Our current situation becomes the dictator of the future. We don't have a picture, we don't want to commit to a 10 year plan but rather prefer to approach life as a mystery. An occurrence we do not have control over.
My father -in-law's words will always be with me: "You will become what you want to become."
There is the answer.
That is the only way to turn your life of mystery into a picture. Desire. Knowing who you want to be, knowing where you want to go.
The pieces of the puzzle will fall in place once you start to walk where your heart leads. When you are true to yourself.
You can't live someone else's life - doing that can only be mysterious. But living the life that was meant for you, through doing that you will be amazed at how accurate your 10 year plan will turn out to be.
Become a puzzle builder, not a mystery solver.
The most recent book in his collection is: "What the dog saw." In this book he aims to find out how people think. He analyses different areas of life from the ketchup business, dog psychology to investments all with the goal to find out how people working in these industries approach what they do.
In his chapter on understanding secrets he refers to two approaches to the unknown. The approach to a mystery vs. a puzzle. If you approach the unknown or a problem as a puzzle your aim would be to collect more information to solve the problem. Every bit of information is a piece in the puzzle. Once you have enough pieces the puzzle is complete. You can see the picture. Problem solved.
Approaching a problem as a mystery is a lot more uncertain. Here you usually have too much information. You have to sift through the information, trying to make sense out of it. You want to see a pattern. You have to link bits and pieces together to form a picture. In the case of a mystery there is no picture - you have to create it as you go along.
In his book he applies these concepts to a military intelligence scenario. He looks at how these different approaches can lead to different outcomes when applied to the same scenario.
During our Stricker family festival Mario's cousin Liezel spoke about their 10 year plan. Her husband, John made them write down their 10 year plan. They forgot about it.
When they moved to Japan recently they came across the forgotten piece of paper while unpacking.
It gave me goose bumps when she said that to their surprise and shock the place that was written next to 2010 was Japan. They did not even remember that they have written Japan down as a place that they would like to live in. But they ended up there. In their subconscious they were steered towards that destination.
It is almost as if their destiny has become a puzzle - a picture already photographed, with the missing pieces falling in place as time passes.
So often life feels more like a mystery. We try to figure out where we want to be, believe we can achieve through analysing the current available information. Our current situation becomes the dictator of the future. We don't have a picture, we don't want to commit to a 10 year plan but rather prefer to approach life as a mystery. An occurrence we do not have control over.
My father -in-law's words will always be with me: "You will become what you want to become."
There is the answer.
That is the only way to turn your life of mystery into a picture. Desire. Knowing who you want to be, knowing where you want to go.
The pieces of the puzzle will fall in place once you start to walk where your heart leads. When you are true to yourself.
You can't live someone else's life - doing that can only be mysterious. But living the life that was meant for you, through doing that you will be amazed at how accurate your 10 year plan will turn out to be.
Become a puzzle builder, not a mystery solver.
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