National Public Radio Made Me Write This Tip
People tend to seek out information that agrees with what they already believe.”
The statement was made yesterday on NPR’s Day to Day by Professor Robert Lichter, discussing why Independents likely won’t go to see any movie with a strong political message that might have the power to sway them.
It grabbed me, stayed with me all day, and demanded that I write this Tip. Because it’s true.
I read blogs where I’ll mainly agree with, sympathize with, or be inspired by similarities with, the authors. I go to stores where I won’t be challenged to try anything too new. I eat food I like, and while I might try that new Thai place, Thai probably being similar to Chinese, I’m no more than curious about Ethiopian or Romanian cuisine. I make friends, go on dates, with people who have a hobby or an interest in common with me, or who are friends with my friends. I’m thinking about seeing one of the movies they discussed on Day to Day (though I think I’ll wait to rent it, since the reviews are rather tepid), but the one from The Other Side of politics doesn’t interest me a bit, even after hearing it’s pretty good.
And among people I hang out with, who we’ve established, probably are quite a bit like me, I’m very, very adventurous. I do explore a lot of new things, I do have a very wide variety of interests, and I am open to a lot more than most (of them). I’ve even recommended exploring unfamiliar places and experiences here.
Heck, tackling industries I know little about, and learning all about them and their customer base, is part of what I do for a living as an Experience Designer. Yet I can only hang my head on this one.
(When I’m not at work) I tend to seek out information (and experiences) that agree with what I already believe.
So today, I’m going to:
Read a blog on a subject I am not even trying to be an expert in, where someone takes a position I don’t agree with, to see what other folks have to say;
Eat at a restaurant I’ve heard is good, that I’ve resisted trying;
and probably,
Go see that movie from The Other Side of the political fence. I’ll try not to groan.
I’m going to integrate experimenting into my life more than I pretend I already have, and by golly, I’m starting today. I don’t like it when a prof from George Mason University can call me out without even knowing me.
Check back with me Monday, when I’ve read all my favorite blogs, talked to my usual colleagues, and I’m eating lunch at my favorite bagel shop. I’ll look and sound entirely different, because boy, I’m busting out.
This is one hot Tip to expand your horizons. If you’re ready to take inspiration from wild new places and points of view, you never know—it could alter the way you do business.
Are you with me? How do you feel about seeking out information that doesn’t fit with what you already believe?
Grow and be well,
Kelly Erickson
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18 October 2008, 9:45 am
I dunno….you can look at it both ways.
One one hand, we can make it sound like it’s a BAD THING that we stay within our comfort zone. We can scold ourselves for being stubborn, stagnant, and unwilling to open up our mind and try new things.
On the other hand, it can be a GOOD THING, a sign of maturity. Maybe at this point in our life, we’ve seen enough and we know what we like. We gravitate towards our comfort zone as a matter of choice, not a matter of ignorance about other alternatives.
It’s good to keep an open mind, though, regarding certain topics. Like don’t eliminate a political candidate just because they’re from the “Wrong Party”. Or if some scientists have conflicting theories on Global Warming, don’t instantly dismiss them, listen to what they have to say.
But for more mundane things in life, I’ve probably made up my mind already.
If I had a choice from having a steak dinner with my beer buddies, or eating curdled goat-milk at that new restaurant with my new Vegan-Hippie friends, I think I’ll know what I’d pick!
This is a GREAT discussion topic.
Friar’s last blog post…Friar-O-Lanterns (Part III)
18 October 2008, 10:14 am
Friar,
Ooh, ooh.
I just watched the most amazing conflicting Theory of Everything. You have to see it. Very mind-opening.
Well, actually, it hurt my brain, but I feel very open, too.
I’ve never been one for comfort zones, and yet he still nabbed me with that statement. I tell myself I want to be challenged by new points of view, new perspectives, but how often do I live up to that? I know I keep my kid on her toes, and my friends and family, but isn’t that bar pretty low?
You with all your world traveling, you aren’t too complacent, either. But I’m guessing in Splat Creek that bar for looking like the adventurous one is VERY low, he he.
Admittedly, if I have two choices (and if I can have wine with my steak), I’m going with you, but I’m not adverse to friends taking me someplace new. I just won’t choose newness on my own. And that’s got me riled.
So wish me well, today I’m going for the curdled goat’s milk. If somebody likes it well enough to build a successful restaurant around it, there must be something to it.
& thanks!
Regards,
Kelly
18 October 2008, 12:51 pm
Oh, I’m not THAT well-traveled. I’ve seen much of Canada and the U.S. I admit, but the only real “foreign” country I’ve been to is Australia.
Not that I won’t ever see someplace else. Just there are only so many weeks of vacation a year, and there’s only so much money I have.
As for that Professer quote. Consider the source
…I bet your dollars-to-donuts, that Professor WASN’T a PhD in engineering, physics, or anything science-related.
I would put money he was and English PhD (or Poli-Sci). I find humanities profs are often against anything traditionally Western Judeo-Christian…it’s only a valid culture if it’s from some exotic country halfway around the globe.
Nobody wants to quote a farmer from South Dakota or eat their home-made apple-pie. But if it comes from some African villager, then it’s considered wise and worldly.
I’m saying this, because it’s NPR (which is a lot like our CBC).
Everything on the CBC is from an English-PhD-Third-World- multi-cultural-Zamfir-Master-of-the-Pan-Flute-Tortured-Intellectual point of view.
Of course they’re gonna tell us to try different things..because they’re so dead-set against anything mainstream and popular.
Oh well, maybe I WILL try that fermented eye-ball goat couscoous one day.
(But in the mean time, I WILL try to catch that Conflicting Theory of Everything!)
Friar’s last blog post…Friar-O-Lanterns (Part III)
18 October 2008, 1:17 pm
Friar,
LOL fermented eye-ball goat couscoous. More like demented, when the Friar’s been thinking too hard about newfangled things!
That was one of the… many… things that drove me nuts about my ex. He was never up for any new experiences (after the ring went on the finger. Before that he was Mr. Try-New-Things). Don’t worry, I’m not bitter about that, because I just kept on with my own life. But to think hard about this prof’s saying we seek what we already agree with… and to know that I do, too, in spite of myself… AARGH!
So wait, is being stuck-in-the-mud “traditionally Western Judeo-Christian”? LOL again.
I’ve already read some very new things, and I had lunch at the place I was resisting. It was good (but I didn’t have the goat balls).
Until later,
Kelly
18 October 2008, 2:10 pm
Hmmmm…what are my choices in Splat Creek?
Chicken Fingers/Club Sammitch. Spaghetti/Lasagna/Pizza. Chinese take-out. Or Butter Chicken at the gas station restaurant.
That about covers it. (Unless I want to deal with the Burger-’Tards at the fast food place!)
I might have to go to the “Big City” for my dose of Tortured-intellectual food.
Friar’s last blog post…Friar-O-Lanterns (Part III)
18 October 2008, 2:32 pm
“Butter Chicken at the gas station restaurant” is just about the grossest thing I’ve ever heard of.
Is grossest a word?
Eeew. That’s a word, right?
18 October 2008, 5:15 pm
Kelly, I too pride myself on living a rut-busting life but I must admit (hand raising slowly)”yea, me too.” This caused me to think about why and I would have to say because sometimes I just too darned tired to deal with “different.” It’s a poor excuse that needs remedying. Now, I won’t be trying any cowboy chili this weekend but I am going to expand my horizons and plan to do so much more often. See you on Monday, all fresh and happy!
Karen Swim’s last blog post…How Santa Busted My Recession Blues
18 October 2008, 5:16 pm
…and obviously too tired to catch typos before they appear on your blog. Drats! That would be I am just too darned tired.
Maybe I should nap before I shake up my world.
Karen Swim’s last blog post…How Santa Busted My Recession Blues
18 October 2008, 6:22 pm
I would submit that there is a pretty wide-ranging continuum of what defines a comfort zone. Some folks “comfort zones” are fairly narrow, that is, avoiding the unfamiliar and seeking affirmation of what they already believe. Other people tend toward believing anything that they hear or see, shifting their opinions like dandelion seeds in the wind.
To quote your post, perhaps because you spend your day “tackling industries I know little about, and learning all about them and their customer base, is part of what I do for a living as an Experience Designer” it feels like a break to ensconce yourself in the familiar and comfortable on your off-hours. I would not say that is something to hang your head over.
I find the most interesting examples of this “familiar experience” phenomenon on the TV news, where the talking heads from the farthest reaches of their field are unable to 1) coherently explain the basis of their belief, or 2) apply even the smallest amount of reason in understanding the belief of the other side.
I seek out new experiences and new ways of looking at things, in order to grow as a person. Except in politics, where I am very careful - because of the level of vitriol and closed-mindedness that many (on both sides) exhibit. And particularly any of the phony-baloney analysis of the “English-PhD-Third-World- multi-cultural-Zamfir-Master-of-the-Pan-Flute-Tortured-Intellectual.” LOL
18 October 2008, 6:45 pm
Karen,
I had to read it 3X to catch the typo. I just good at filling in the blanks.
I dunno about the chili, but I’d be happy to try a cowboy. (Did I say that? Must be Saturday night, time to get out of here…)
@Stephen,
So are you saying I can lay off the goat eyeballs and go for a steak with Friar now, no guilt involved? Whew.
I know, I might come up with a rationale, but I’d rather not. I’m not too worried about my food choices (thought I had fun at lunch), but not being willing to seek out differing viewpoints… having already made up my mind about which movies I would and wouldn’t see based on ideology rather than whether I like the type of movie or whether it’s supposed to be any good… I don’t like that in myself.
I wonder if I’m getting complacent, and I don’t want to go there. It’s a hop and a step to closed-minded, isn’t it?
Great thoughts on this. Hm, hm.
Until later,
Kelly
19 October 2008, 11:14 pm
Hi Kelly,
People are designed to be highly adaptable — it’s a big reason why humans as a species have been very successful. Part of that adapting is that we find what works for us *now* and stick with it. This is why we are creatures of habit — it is essentially a defense mechanism.
But in this day and age, our lives really do not have a lot of danger. We aren’t being driven to new territories by predators or competing tribes of humans. Weather plays a small part in our heated/AC homes. And so on.
In other words, the change we are hard-wired to expect and adapt to just doesn’t occur like it used to. Just as exercise and diet are not the same as it was thousands of years ago.
So even though out bodies naturally want us to “get comfortable” with our surroundings, we also need the challenge of a changing environment. And just as we need to get on a treadmill to replace constant walking, hunting, and gathering, we need to artificially create new environments for ourselves as well.
The terrible thing though is as we get older, we are less likely to *want* to try new things. Twenty years ago, I didn’t think twice about sleeping in a railway station, eating a raw shrimp from a Norwegian fisherman, or having a beer with a 50-year old man who had been to Canada and loved the country and wanted to talk about Toronto ‘cuz he missed it but he only drank coffee while feeding me beer and why don’t I stay at his place tonight and catch the early morning train instead…? (Confession: I was up for drinking the beer, but even then I had limits on the experiences I wanted to experience. I took the night train.)
The long and the short of it: we need to consciously choose to try new things, and fight the natural urge to go with what we know already.
So tonight, I’ll try the Ritz with *extra* cheesy flavour, and watch this House show everyone’s been talking about.
~Graham
20 October 2008, 12:32 am
BTW @ Friar: I like your English-PhD-Third-World- multi-cultural-Zamfir-Master-of-the-Pan-Flute-Tortured-Intellectual description of the CBC, but it’s a little general.
I prefer to think of it as more of a English-PhD-Third-World- multi-cultural-Zamfir-Master-of-the-Pan-Flute-Tortured-Intellectual-debating-what-it-is-to-be-Canadian-while -reconciling-the-Don/Ron*-within-us-all-and-quietly-biting-their-tongue-about-the-current-government-and-its -lack-of-arts-support-but-hey-they-are-the-boss-so-let’s-do-our-best-within-the -confines-of-the-quasi-rules-presenters.
Not to correct you — I guess I just like to be accurate.
~Graham
*For those of you unfamiliar with Canadian philosophy: Don Cherry and Ron McLean from Hockey Night in Canada’s Coach’s Corner; the Canadian Yin/Yang.
Graham Strong’s last blog post…The Art of Perception (Part I): Doors of Perception
20 October 2008, 7:06 am
Graham,
a. I dunno, goat eyeballs could be kinda dangerous;
b. None of my business, you didn’t have to confess to which road you travelled;
c. ROFL at your BTW.
Yep, consciously fight it. I agree.
Until later,
Kelly
20 October 2008, 9:07 am
@Graham
You’re right, we have it so easy, we aren’t really at risk.
Compared to even 60 years ago. Poland got invaded and my Grandparents ended up being refugees until 1952, when they eventually got into Canada, totally starting a new life from scratch.
Talk about getting out of your comfort zone.
Not too different from what millions of refugees are still doing today.
(Meanwhile, we might debate about buying that “extra cheezy” Ritz flavor, like you say).
PS. Nice accurate description of the CBC in your BTW!!!
Don Cherry for Prime Minister!
Friar’s last blog post…Six Habits out of Seven Ain’t Bad.