Making (verbal) sense of the human "doing"
This morning DnI were talking about what precludes one to getting tasks done. There are three parts to any task in life:
- The natural inclination / interest in the task
- The interest in the challenge of undertaking any task regardless of the natural interest it holds
- The motivation to overcome the unknowns and to take the first step.
When natural inclination / interest in the task is high, usually the other 2 factors are non issues. In the same manner when natural interest is low, one or both of the others must attempt to compensate so as to accomplish the task at hand.
Add this to the 3 types of problems, the Simple, the Complex & the Wicked, we already have a scientific way to understand many parts of life.
We discovered through this mode of analysis that architecture school was hard for me partially because the motivation to overcome the unknowns and the fear of executing an unknown path without knowing neither starting point nor destination (the difficulties of the "wicked" problem) were high.
oldhen for example and many grad students may not only face the obstacles of the wicked problem, but moreover, their natural interest / inclination has been challenged as a result of the obstacles.
D often relies too much on his natural inclination / interest and does not work hard enough to compensate with sheer challenge (imo). Or perhaps doesn't have an interest in the challenge of the task. Perhaps it is my natural insecurity that allows me to take on and enjoy the challenge of any task. I'm still trying to prove that I can do it, while D's natural security detracts from his ability to create interest in the challenge when faced with a void of natural interest. Is "eagerness to please" either a prerequisite or synonymous to the desire to take on a challenge. Is the desire to enjoy the success of achievement the same or the natural next step ?
Thus, creating an interest in the "challenge" of any task is sometimes hard work, but should be doable when seen that way. When employers look for people, they look for those with a natural inclination for the tasks, with the necessary skill set, but perhaps importantly, for the desire and the interest in any type of challenge.
And perhaps greatness occurs when all three factors are high.
To add to this, jace says thought provokingly on his blog:
"I like to believe that my day is comprised of three types of activities: production, consumption and administration. Production is making things. Getting things done. That which results in a sense of accomplishment. That which causes your boss to give you a pay hike. That amorphous factor labeled ‘Productivity.’
Consumption is learning. Fuel for growth. Consumption comes with a sweet sense of understanding, of enlightenment. Consumption is habit forming. It’s addictive. But consumption, though good, is rarely higher priority than production.
Administration is everything else. Brushing your teeth, sitting in traffic, paying utility bills. That stuff that bogs you down. That which you’ll never look back on and recall as a highlight of your life. Some administration is good for you (brushing teeth). The rest (paying bills, etc) is best outsourced to someone who sees it a productive act."
Is there is a fourth type of activity = 'Entertainment'. Or perhaps it is not a type of activity, but a factor in any of these activities. And one 'consumption' activity should be to figure out how to maximize the Entertainment / Enjoyment value of each or all these activities.
I enjoy 'Production', but I enjoy 'Consumption' even more, leading it to be addictive. Reading LJ is a large 'Consumption' activity for me. It perhaps may not be as 'Consumptive' as others, such as reading books of 'paper-published' authors. There are also 'Administrative' activities that are very enjoyable - like eating. And there are some activities that cross the bounds. Some 'Administrative' activities can lead to 'Production', and one can always argue that 'Consumption' can help make Production and Administration activities better / more efficient.
jace also says he was considering 'Rejuvenation' as the fourth activity. 'Rejuvenation' is perhaps any activity that allows us to Produce, Consume or Administer better ? Even when it is actually one of these three activities... Is there an entertainment value to 'Rejuvenation', or perhaps by its very nature, it is enjoyable ?
So perhaps 'Rejuvenation' is indeed a fourth type of activity, also possibly addictive because of its enjoyment value. And we are often trying to find the balance between those activities that are enjoyable and those that are not. We try to justify entertainment activities as 'Rejuveinative', thereby justifying them as necessary.**
Or perhaps, any of these activities can have a 'Rejuvenation' value just like they have an 'Entertainment' value and there are some activities that are neither Productive, Consumptive or Administrative, but are either / both Rejuvenating & Entertaining.
In my head there is a complex 4d linked matrix, unique to each of us, between
-----------------------------
[Natural Interest / Enjoyment / Satisfaction value in a task]**
[Interest in the Challenge of a task]
[Motivation to overcome the next three items / begin the task]
[Rejuvenation value in a task]
-----------------------------
-----------------------------
[Fears / Unknowns of a task]
[Number of solutions / Number of paths to a task]
[Defining a task & how to achieve it]
-----------------------------
-----------------------------
[Production activities]
[Consumption / Learning activities]
[Administrative activities]
-----------------------------
I haven't quite put it all together yet, but I figured that while it's on my back burner, I can share it with others so something may come out of discourse and discussion. Still, it is all a part of the human "doing". This doesn't do much to explain or contribute to the human "being". ***
Thus there is another component of this matrix with its own sub-matrix (relating perhaps to the 'Rejuvenation' value): The states of being (I'll say well-being as the semantics are easier to understand when joined with the possible goal).
[Spiritual well being]
[Emotive / Mental well being]
[Physical well being]
So this task, which is Consumptive & hopefully Productive, can also be Entertaining and contribute to Rejuvenation and lead to the various states of well being. The task is to simplify the matrix, or to create one that is rationally comprehendible.
Footnotes:
* Which brings up the complex concept of what exactly is "necessary" to life and why - beyond the scope of this post.
** One's natural interest in a task can feed off the anticipated enjoyment during the task, or the anticipated satisfaction after the completion of the task. If natural interest is low, it can be compensated with the interest in the challenge / motivation, but also by trying to increase the natural interest through the anticipation of enjoyment / satisfaction. The interest in the challenge can also feed off the anticipated enjoyment / satisfaction from taking on the challenge.
***"Human-doing" expression courtesy J. Shaffer
- The natural inclination / interest in the task
- The interest in the challenge of undertaking any task regardless of the natural interest it holds
- The motivation to overcome the unknowns and to take the first step.
When natural inclination / interest in the task is high, usually the other 2 factors are non issues. In the same manner when natural interest is low, one or both of the others must attempt to compensate so as to accomplish the task at hand.
Add this to the 3 types of problems, the Simple, the Complex & the Wicked, we already have a scientific way to understand many parts of life.
We discovered through this mode of analysis that architecture school was hard for me partially because the motivation to overcome the unknowns and the fear of executing an unknown path without knowing neither starting point nor destination (the difficulties of the "wicked" problem) were high.
oldhen for example and many grad students may not only face the obstacles of the wicked problem, but moreover, their natural interest / inclination has been challenged as a result of the obstacles.
D often relies too much on his natural inclination / interest and does not work hard enough to compensate with sheer challenge (imo). Or perhaps doesn't have an interest in the challenge of the task. Perhaps it is my natural insecurity that allows me to take on and enjoy the challenge of any task. I'm still trying to prove that I can do it, while D's natural security detracts from his ability to create interest in the challenge when faced with a void of natural interest. Is "eagerness to please" either a prerequisite or synonymous to the desire to take on a challenge. Is the desire to enjoy the success of achievement the same or the natural next step ?
Thus, creating an interest in the "challenge" of any task is sometimes hard work, but should be doable when seen that way. When employers look for people, they look for those with a natural inclination for the tasks, with the necessary skill set, but perhaps importantly, for the desire and the interest in any type of challenge.
And perhaps greatness occurs when all three factors are high.
To add to this, jace says thought provokingly on his blog:
"I like to believe that my day is comprised of three types of activities: production, consumption and administration. Production is making things. Getting things done. That which results in a sense of accomplishment. That which causes your boss to give you a pay hike. That amorphous factor labeled ‘Productivity.’
Consumption is learning. Fuel for growth. Consumption comes with a sweet sense of understanding, of enlightenment. Consumption is habit forming. It’s addictive. But consumption, though good, is rarely higher priority than production.
Administration is everything else. Brushing your teeth, sitting in traffic, paying utility bills. That stuff that bogs you down. That which you’ll never look back on and recall as a highlight of your life. Some administration is good for you (brushing teeth). The rest (paying bills, etc) is best outsourced to someone who sees it a productive act."
Is there is a fourth type of activity = 'Entertainment'. Or perhaps it is not a type of activity, but a factor in any of these activities. And one 'consumption' activity should be to figure out how to maximize the Entertainment / Enjoyment value of each or all these activities.
I enjoy 'Production', but I enjoy 'Consumption' even more, leading it to be addictive. Reading LJ is a large 'Consumption' activity for me. It perhaps may not be as 'Consumptive' as others, such as reading books of 'paper-published' authors. There are also 'Administrative' activities that are very enjoyable - like eating. And there are some activities that cross the bounds. Some 'Administrative' activities can lead to 'Production', and one can always argue that 'Consumption' can help make Production and Administration activities better / more efficient.
jace also says he was considering 'Rejuvenation' as the fourth activity. 'Rejuvenation' is perhaps any activity that allows us to Produce, Consume or Administer better ? Even when it is actually one of these three activities... Is there an entertainment value to 'Rejuvenation', or perhaps by its very nature, it is enjoyable ?
So perhaps 'Rejuvenation' is indeed a fourth type of activity, also possibly addictive because of its enjoyment value. And we are often trying to find the balance between those activities that are enjoyable and those that are not. We try to justify entertainment activities as 'Rejuveinative', thereby justifying them as necessary.**
Or perhaps, any of these activities can have a 'Rejuvenation' value just like they have an 'Entertainment' value and there are some activities that are neither Productive, Consumptive or Administrative, but are either / both Rejuvenating & Entertaining.
In my head there is a complex 4d linked matrix, unique to each of us, between
-----------------------------
[Natural Interest / Enjoyment / Satisfaction value in a task]**
[Interest in the Challenge of a task]
[Motivation to overcome the next three items / begin the task]
[Rejuvenation value in a task]
-----------------------------
-----------------------------
[Fears / Unknowns of a task]
[Number of solutions / Number of paths to a task]
[Defining a task & how to achieve it]
-----------------------------
-----------------------------
[Production activities]
[Consumption / Learning activities]
[Administrative activities]
-----------------------------
I haven't quite put it all together yet, but I figured that while it's on my back burner, I can share it with others so something may come out of discourse and discussion. Still, it is all a part of the human "doing". This doesn't do much to explain or contribute to the human "being". ***
Thus there is another component of this matrix with its own sub-matrix (relating perhaps to the 'Rejuvenation' value): The states of being (I'll say well-being as the semantics are easier to understand when joined with the possible goal).
[Spiritual well being]
[Emotive / Mental well being]
[Physical well being]
So this task, which is Consumptive & hopefully Productive, can also be Entertaining and contribute to Rejuvenation and lead to the various states of well being. The task is to simplify the matrix, or to create one that is rationally comprehendible.
Footnotes:
* Which brings up the complex concept of what exactly is "necessary" to life and why - beyond the scope of this post.
** One's natural interest in a task can feed off the anticipated enjoyment during the task, or the anticipated satisfaction after the completion of the task. If natural interest is low, it can be compensated with the interest in the challenge / motivation, but also by trying to increase the natural interest through the anticipation of enjoyment / satisfaction. The interest in the challenge can also feed off the anticipated enjoyment / satisfaction from taking on the challenge.
***"Human-doing" expression courtesy J. Shaffer