Issue #112: Developing. Interestingness.
Weekly curated resources for movers and practitioners.
A while back I read this wonderful insight by Kris Rai from Jointspace.
“In our lives, in medicine, in sports performance, in injury prevention, first we must observe. From our observations, we can then understand. Understand our structure, our form, and what shapes us. Without context, however, this means nothing. It must relate to something… It is difficult to develop from a narrow foundation. From a deep understanding, we can create a wide platform for development.“ ~Kris Rai
Observe.
Understand.
Develop.
Most people don’t know I minored in computer science in college. One of the many valuable lessons I learned was “Black Box” testing vs “White Box” testing. In a nutshell:
Black box testing is a method in which the structure and design of the thing being tested are unknown to the tester.
White Box testing is the opposite, the structure and design of the thing being tested are known to the tester.
I like using this metaphor for how most people approach getting in “shape,” losing weight, and moving their bodies - in this Black Box manner; They want to jump straight to developing without first observing and then understanding.
We have to flip that perspective to more of a White Box method.
Observe.
Understand.
Develop.
**Speaking of development… I just started an immersive software coding Bootcamp. I’ve noticed a huge gap between designers and developers; speaking both languages seems to be a valuable skill. I’m sharing this update with you all as a form of accountability to complete said Bootcamp. If you’re a software developer (or know someone in the field) I’d love to connect with you, shoot me a reply.
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READ, WATCH, LISTEN ⤵
READ: The Craftsman’s Approach
(Reading Time: ~3 min)
“Treat anything you do in life with care, respect and your full attention. It doesn’t matter whether it is baking bread, driving a truck, dancing, teaching people, creating music or coding. It is important to understand that you don’t need to do rare things to be fulfilled, you need to have a rare approach to what you are doing. The means are not important, what is important is the constant search for excellence. Your abilities are infinitely improvable, so is the outcome of your actions.”
READ: Don’t Try To Be Interesting. Do Interesting.
(Reading Time: ~9 mins)
A beautiful essay that makes the case that “interestingness” is nothing more than a focus on process and an act of paying attention.
“Interesting isn’t a personality type, it’s a set of habits and a way of seeing the world…The way to be interesting is to be interested. You’ve got to find what’s interesting in everything, you’ve got to be good at noticing things, you’ve got to be good at listening. If you find people (and things) interesting, they’ll find you interesting.”
“Ideas mostly come from the slow, quiet accumulation of seemingly banal and obvious habits. It’s just doing the right things to make sure your mind and your life are brimming with hearty compost…Don’t hunt for diamonds. Get fascinated by pebbles.”
AESTHETICALLY PLEASING 👀
A wonderful visual by Olivia De Recat.
TINY INSIGHT 🧠
No risk. No story.
•••
To Continuous Development,
Galo Alfredo Naranjo
"people that are interestING are people that are interestED." - Alan Watts
love it, good post