I’ve been reading Paul Millerd’s book “The Pathless Path”, a book about your relationship with work and alternative paths.
Paul keeps quoting all these different authors and interesting people throughout the book but today, there was this one idea that really hit home.
He quotes a conversation between Maria Popova and Krista Tippet on her podcast “On Being”.
When talking about critical thinking, Maria said:
(…) critical thinking without hope is cynicism. But hope without critical thinking is naiveté.
The moment I read this, my educator identity just lit up.
This is the key to helping students at a young age understand how to think better. I’ve said it before. High Schoolers are the key to a Modern Golden Age and we can make it happen by teaching them some specific skills. The overall approach that ties it all together though is this mixture between Hope and Critical Thinking. It’s this phenomenal combination that allows a deeper, more positive and impactful relationship with the world.
However, to do so, we need to inquire about our own minds and worldviews. What are you lacking? Is it critical thinking or hope?
If it’s the former, in 2021, I wrote a thread on a 30-day challenge around it. You can read it here.
If it’s the latter, I like to think about this idea Sharon Lopez presents in “Making Hope Happen”:
Hope matters. Hope is a choice. Hope can be learned. Hope can be shared with others.
Does the "Pathless path" has anything to do with spirituality?
"Vedanta" has anything to do with what the author says?