Tag: suggestions

I’m Exhaling Answers

Nancy Dwyer

I’m not one for answers. Giving them, anyway. I dig the search for answers, and I’m happy to help you on your way to whatever answers you’ve deemed worthy of your time. I’m not the person to whom you should turn if you’re expecting answers to questions that aren’t in my unique locus of control.

But I sure do inhale the loose ends, the un-networked nodes, the ideas in the ether that aren’t tremendously useful to me in the moment, but represent the potential of usefulness down the road.

I breath these ideas in and let them fire the respiratory flow of possibilities.

Then, in front of a classroom – in a conference presentation, on an email chain, or a chance meeting – I exhale these loose ends in hopes of creating a more complete atmosphere of answers to your questions. It turns out I’ve been carrying these loose ends to help you tie and tidy up your questions.

I’m the fellow who’s spent hours reading research reports, opening tab after tab on his browser window, shaking every hand at the party and cataloging them all in my head for that one question you ask when I’m on a panel. Often, far too often, the other folks will dodge your question. They’ll give you philosophical answers that start with, “That’s a good question,” with the subtext of, “And I’m going to answer a completely different one right now.”

That’s when I’m ready to exhale and say, “I don’t know if this will be helpful, but here are four specific places you should look to help you down your path.” I can’t promise they’ll get you everywhere you want to be, but they will get you closer than you are now.” It’s also my way of acknowledging I don’t know the answer, but I can hopefully connect you with someone who does.

In the classroom or working with a group of educators in professional development, my exhale may seem foul. Not because of me, but because of what’s come before. People are often conditioned for the yes or the no. They’re expecting the, “That’s wrong, and here’s what’s right.”

That’s not how I breath. My telling you doesn’t teach you. It might give you something new to tell others, but I’m dubious of someone who answers any question with, “Because Zac told me.” You’re ideas need something stronger than hearsay as their foundation.

This post is part of a daily conversation between Ben Wilkoff and me. Each day Ben and I post a question to each other and then respond to one another. You can follow the questions and respond via Twitter at #LifeWideLearning

Things I Know 319 of 365: I read about stuff other than education too

I get that the bulk of what I write about has to do about education or ends up being curved toward education no matter how seemingly unrelated it may seem at face value.

I do care about other things. To prove the point, here are 5 blogs I read on a regular basis that are not about education:

1. The Bloggess – My friend Kat turned me on to the Bloggess last year as we were sharing comedic twitter accounts to follow. I through it in my feed reader and didn’t pay it any mind for several months. By the time I got to cleaning out unread posts, several gems from The Bloggess were waiting for me. Irreverent, honest, comedic and slightly askew, The Bloggess makes me laugh on a consistent basis. Perhaps a stronger vote of confidence, there are few blogs I’ve forwarded on to friends more frequently than this one. Here’s a recent favorite post to get you started.

2. 101 Cookbooks – I love eating, cooking, and looking at things that are pretty. 101 Cookboooks satisfies each of these hobbies. Each recipe is beautifully photographed and described as if I was right there in the kitchen as it was being prepared. What’s more, the recipes are supremely followable. My latest endeavor was the Buttermilk Squash Soup. (drool)

3. Music from Go to Whoa – Aside from food, my most frequent consumption involves music. This blog posts new tracks and videos from musicians just this side of the main stream. Check in here has led me to finding bands that have found solid standing in my favorites file – including this video of tUnE-YarDs performing on Jimmy Fallon.

4. FlowingData – Anything that challenges how I think about the world while putting ideas in beautiful order is marked down as a winner in my book FlowingData is just that and provides a regular dose of “Huh, I’d never have thought of that.”

5. The Freakonomics Blog – Tim and I were talking the other night about how the Freakonomics books and podcast have shifted how we think about the world and led us to ask the question, “What’s really going on here?” The Freakonomics Blog does that with dazzling regularity. It’s a regular read for me, but also requires me to filter from information overload. The bloggers post so much quality content, it’s sometimes difficult for me to keep up. That said, it’s one of my favorite reads.