Reflection Entry #2

Buckle Up! and Enjoy the ride!

My mind was in a roller coaster ride of emotions when I read Howard Gardner's (5 Minds of the future) idea. There were some points that Gardner raised where I caught myself nodding in silent agreement. However, there were also times where just like a rollercoaster ride, I couldn't help but cringe because of our divergence of opinions on the must have competencies of the future.

Gardner's approach was very personal. His thoughts as he said were constructed based on his "own values". Which is why I question the universality of his vision. I feel compelled to challenge some of his too specific prescriptions of the 5 Minds of the Future.

(The Disciplined Mind vs The Adaptable Mind)

According to Gardner, in order for an individual to be "gainfully employed” in the future, he or she must be an “expert”, and should at least “master” one of the so-called “major way of thinking” (Math, Science, etc.) I question Gardner’s concept of a disciplined mind. We live in a very fast paced, constantly changing and developing world. What could be a ‘the enterprising thing’ today could be passe the next day. We live in a very unpredictable environment. The idea of mastering ‘one’, could be very limiting. First, I question the ‘major ways’. What constitutes something or a subject area to be classified as a major way of thinking? Second, How do we measure one’s ‘mastery’ of something? I do not intend to simply oppose Gardner’s idea, but I wish to rectify how he defined a ‘disciplined mind’ as one of the key competencies of the future. I also question the efficacy of his concept in ensuring ones employability in the future.

I believe that our future requires more than just being an ‘expert’ in something. Instead of having a tunnel visioned perspective, I believe that we can break free from this linearity and push the development of an ADAPTABLE MIND. A disciplined mind that is able to adapt with our incessantly changing world.

The future holds so much uncertainties. Being too fixated with mastering a single skill, might limit our opportunities. The future needs people who can go beyond being experts of one thing. We need people who are flexible and are not afraid to adapt with the demands of our rapidly changing world. We should not limit our learning to one thing.

A Passionate Mind

This is Isa Lorenzo. I first encountered her March 2006, when I interviewed her for a TV show where I work then as a researcher. The concept of our episode then was to feature outstanding women of the Philippines. Isa made our list for being one of the few renowed female photographers in the country. Interestingly, prior to her life behind the lens, she graduated with a degree in medicine from one of the best medicine schools in the Philippines. She passed the medical boards and became a certified M.D. but she never practiced because she fell in love with photography. According to Isa, her mother insisted that she finished medicine, because it was said to be a profession that ensures stability in the future. Isa was not the only one who was subjected to this traditional way of thinking. Even I am aware of this type of thinking. At the top of my head I could name top professions that I think most parents wish their children to become in the future: a doctor, a lawyer, or an engineer. This shows that we are programmed to think that there are 'major ways' of thinking. We must break free from this, as it is becoming one of the most common mistakes that we are all guilty of. We associate success with being 'gainfully employed' just like Gardner. We forget a concept very important which is- 'Passion' in whatever it is that we do. I realized with Isa's story that that the mastery of something we are not passionate about is useless, in the end it will only make us unhappy. Isa Lorenzo has a very inspiring story, and I believe has a passionate mind that our future needs. A mind that exudes with passion for what she does. A mind that was able to break free from old traditions.

(The Creative Mind vs The Monkey Mind)

I celebrated in my head when I read that one of the minds needed for the future are the creative ones. I thought to myself, “Yes! I have what it takes to conquer the future!”. But as I continue to read the definition of the creative mind, I was disappointed. Apparently, I celebrated too early. My idea of creativity wasn’t aligned with Gardner's. According to him, one cannot be creative unless he or she has mastered at least one discipline, art, or craft. Again he talks about the idea of ‘mastery’, which is difficult to measure. Is 10 years of continuous practice enough to say that one is a ‘master’ of his art? Personally, I believe that creativity goes beyond arts and crafts. Being creative can also be by means of combining brilliant ideas from different disciplines which Frans Johansson calls ‘the intersection’ or the ‘Medici Effect’. I can't help but favor Johansson’s contrasting concept with Gardner. It is true that years of practice can do wonders, and can produce great products of creativity. However, it is not always the case. As Johansson explained in his concept of intersections, sometimes the most ingenious products are out of the ordinary things.

Instead of again being to focused on one art discipline, the creative mind can be modified by making it more explorative in nature. Allowing it to experiment on odd combinations, breaking the rules of artistic perfection, and giving attention to trivial things. A creative mind should not be constrained with the idea of ‘mastery’. It should be left playful, like a MONKEY MIND. Allowing it to jump and play with many ideas. The demands for creativity in the future will go beyond arts and crafts. The future requires one more than just to perfect brush strokes. It needs NEW creative ideas that are not only formulated by years of practice, but also of lived unique experiences.

I enrolled in various art schools but I haven’t learned the right way of making art. I get so frustrated whenever I am asked to create precise lines, with proper measurements first

before I draw anything. I hated the idea of using pencils to draw a sketch first before the actual artwork. I hated the idea of having rules in art. I feel most creative when I am not confined with proper proportions.I found the joy in using pen as my medium because I couldn’t earase it. I love making mistakes whenever I make art. I feel that each mistake is part of the artwork as well. I feel that I am most creative when I am not trying so hard to 'master' art and I just let my Monkey Mind loose and go out of control that I get to create my most wonderful art.

The Synthesizing Mind vs The Critical Mind

Another interesting mind concept of Gardner is the Synthesizing mind. Its main thrust lies on the ability of people to choose proper information from the many information one receives daily. The ability to select information is important, but it is NOT merely the selection process that we should pay attention to, but also the process of being critical to the different divulged information one has at hand. Gardner talks about reflecting, deciding, listening, examining and then deciding, however he failed to mention the importance of being critical, asking about the information at hand. The idea of having a CRITICAL mind I believe can help improve ones synthesizing skills. Because synthesizing involves more than just reflecting and then choosing...It is important to be critical on how we arrive at a certain decision.

In my M.A. classes, I always hear the being 'critical'. I am encouraged constantly by my instructors to ask questions, to probe and dig deeper until I find the best answer or sometimes no answer at all and simply better understanding of things. As odd as it may seem, but I find this more liberating, because unlike in the past where there are point blank best answers to certain questions. Now it seems like we are living in a world where the best answers to hard questions, are in the form of another question.

The Ethical & Respectful Mind vs An Open Mind

In relation with the Synthesizing Mind, Gardner also discussed the importance of having an Ethical Mind and a Respectful Mind. I do not question integrity behind Gardner's ideal. In the 'ideal world', we will have all have an Ethical Mind and a Respectful Mind. But that is in the 'ideal world', what about the 'real world'? Without the intent to sound too pessimistic, I believe that there will be more challenges in the future, and so we must develop minds that are equipped with the proper skills fit for the demands of the future. So instead of simply relying on having a Respectful and Ethical Mind, I want to modify this and push for the development of an Open Mind. A mind that has its biases, has its own moral fiber, but is able to open itself to varied viewpoints. That to me is more realistic. Our world at present is a world of diversity. In the future i envision a world filled with even more diversity. The best way I can think of to unite us all is for us to embrace diversity, and be open about contrasting belief systems, ideologies, perception of things like what is ethical, or what is respectful.

Our life is like a roller coaster ride, filled with unexpected turns, that could jolt us out of our senses. We do not know what the future holds, all I know for sure is that the future is filled with uncertainties. So to end this post I think that another good kind of mind that we should develop for the future is to develop a Clean Slate Mind. A mind that is FREE to explore, learn new things as much as it can as we enjoy the ride called LIFE.