Tag: ponder

Things I Know 149 of 365: I am an authority

I did something arguably pompous and decidedly cheeky yesterday.

In the fever dream that was the completion of my last annotated bibliography for a good long time, I decided to use a book in which I had been cited. Not only that, I made reference to something I’d said in the book in order to back up a point I was making in my annotation.

The whole thing struck me as rather odd, and I did what I usually do when faced with the oddity of my life – I tweeted it.

I tweeted what I had done and admitted to waiting for the universe to fold in on itself.

It was a strange feeling using me to back myself up.

Within a few minutes, a few folks replied on twitter – each equally cheeky.

One reply stood out. I’m not certain of its exact level of cheekiness, but it certainly got me thinking.

Durff asked, “What makes you an authority?”

That’s the kind of question that’ll get a guy pondering.

My initial reaction, whether genuine humility or my midwestern roots, was to say to myself, “Oh, no, I’m not. Not me. No authority here.”

Then I started pondering a bit more.

Turns out, I am an authority.

Not only am I familiar with the topic about which I was speaking, but I work to refine my practice daily. I try to push the envelope of what can be done and am constantly reflecting when I fall short so that I can improve on each try. Others recognize my experience and consult me on the topic regularly and by all accounts take what I say to heart as useful and wise.

I am an authority.

Am I the authority? No.

But the more I think about it, the more denying my authority in any given subject feels akin to calling myself a facilitator instead of a teacher.

I’m not an expert, genius or guru.

Someday, maybe, but not today.

I’m not always right.

Someday, maybe, no, never ever ever.

I might not always be an authority. I might fall behind, lose interest or be proven interminably wrong.

For now, though, I am an authority. I have earned that right.

For the same reason I wouldn’t accept a student’s claim of stupidity, I will own my authority.

Things I Know 28 of 365: Sometimes it’s best to sit and listen

Listen my children and you shall hear.

– Henry Woodsworth Longfellow, “Paul Revere’s Ride”

Five people from varied fields sat in leather chairs I’ve been told have some pretty intense historical value.

Representing tech, ethics, agriculture, design and the arts, these five spoke for two hours on the ipetus and importance of innovation.

They’ve traveled the world, worked in amazing locales and used focused their lives on understanding, solving and anticipating problems unique to their fields.

The ideas they’ve played with exist largely outside the ideas floating in the air of a traditional English classroom.

No one polled the audience, no one asked for show of hands or had to prepare a slide deck or vacate the stage after 20 minutes.

It was intelligent people who do useful work talking to one another, sharing ideas. And, we got to watch.

Nothing was expected of me other than listening and considering.
Pondering.

Nothing was ignited and TED wasn’t in the house.

And this, this has value. It has the value of listening to Beethoven or reading Wilde or visiting a Picasso.

Sometimes, participation means listening. Sometimes, learning is a silent act.

Tomorrow, there will be sessions and presentations and conversations and we will talk and listen and ask and answer.

Tonight, thoughtful people spoke and our job was to listen and ponder.