Well, I've been far too busy lately, but here's a story about something that happened in class today that I just wanted to share. I think it's kind of stream of consciousness, so hopefully it makes sense when you read it. Anyway, in the future, expect a post or two about some new thoughts that have been brewing in my head. Forecast? You will probably think I'm pretty weird by my new thoughts, but then, that's not too surprising, right? Here's today's story:
I had my "work" talk with students today. We start out with a question about "What's the history of work." Most of them talk about primitive societies. I offer that perhaps the first men and women were actually much greater than we were - so great that if we met them we might even feel like we should be worshipping them. I know that's a bit of a Christian belief, but I don't tell them that. They all seem to like this idea as a possibility and for discussion.
Then I ask them "Why do you work?" Most of them are quick to say survival and improving their quality of life. And slowly some other answers emerge, like fulfilling their self purpose and to make their lives more interesting. Then I ask them to think about what other parts there are to our lives. They say things like eating, sleeping, and relaxing. I ask them if they enjoy these things. They all say a big YES! I then ask if they enjoy work. Mixed reviews.
So, I ask them, "Why do you enjoy eating, sleeping, and relaxing?" The food tastes good and keeps them from being hungry. Sleeping keeps them from being tired, and a comfortable bed feels so nice. And relaxing helps them not to feel so many pressures and stresses in life. So, I ask them if those things are ever bad. They say of course. Sometimes food doesn't taste good, sometimes sleep is full of nightmares, and sometimes when we are relaxing we might end up fighting with our friends. I asked them if they still enjoy those things in general. Of course! So, I ask them if they think eating, sleeping and relaxing have value for their lives. They say yes.
Then I ask, "What's the value of work?" Most of them have similar answers to the last question, which is fine. So I ask them if they know what good eating, sleeping, and relaxing should look like. They say of course! I ask them how they know those things. They say they have read it in books or their parents told them or they heard it somewhere. I ask if that's enough to convince them it's true. They say that after time and experience, they see that what they've been told seems to be true. So I ask them if they know what good work looks like. Mixed responses. Although, most seem to agree that after experience, they will know what is good work.
Next I ask, "If no one told you what was good for eating, sleeping, and relaxing, how would you know what is good for you?" They again say that they could learn from experience. So I ask them about some different foods - particularly vegetables. Some of them like these vegetables; some of them do not. But we all agree that they are healthy veggies and that they are good for everyone, even if you don't like them. I asked the people who didn't like some vegetables if they eat those vegetables often. They said no. They would eat them if it was necessary, but it wouldn't be their first choice.
So I again ask them how they would know if work was good for them or not. They then start to recognize that maybe there are many good kinds of work out there, but not everyone is going to like every kind of work that is available. Also, they begin to see that they may not be able to know if a work is good for them until they try it. So I ask how many of them are nervous about finding a job. Everyone said yes. I asked them if there was anything they could do right now that would tell them if they would like their future job. Most of them said no or that the things they could do were pretty small. So, I asked them if being nervous would actually help them. Most of them agreed that it would not help them. And, even though they weren't completely satisfied by this, I saw many of them breathe a sigh of relief. It was as if someone gave them permission to not feel so much pressure about their futures. Pretty cool.
And we talked about several other aspects of what this would mean. Things like, if I pick a bad job, can I change it? Will I get stuck in a bad career path if I stay in a bad job for too long? Is there any way to make work more enjoyable on a regular basis? How do you add variety to a job that is boring and repetitive? Yeah, the discussion was just great. One of the best talks we've had all semester. It was really an honor to be their teacher today.
