Session Review on Habits of Mind (Aug 21, 2007)

 

The team work we all showed in bringing down the stick was awesome. But what brought it down? The minute we all had a common goal and a strategy and each one of us was putting an individual effort, the stick came down in no time.

 

A very powerful thought: What's the use of having an experience if we don't take the time to reflect upon it, learn from it, and figure out what happened, what worked and what didn't or even how I would approach if I face the same situation next time?

But how can I reflect upon certain experience? May be by first thinking about the situation, how I felt at that time, how I am feeling now when I am thinking about it and what I learnt from it. May be I can try out this strategy to think about my past, some pleasant one and some not so and try to reflect on what I want to learn from those.

 

Debate and my listening skills… How good I am in listening others point of view? How important is to prove my point of view when I won't be gaining anything from it?    How can I improve my listening skills?

Unless I take out my shoes and then put myself in other person shoes, I won't be able to listen with an open mind, understand and take in what he has to offer. Every time I listen, why not say to myself that this person has something very important to offer, which I won't find anywhere else. It is so much easy to swing to any side when my point of view is some what on the line. But I have yet to explore and test how easy it would be to listen to some body with an empty cup when I am totally opposed to what other person is saying.

 

So much to learn, experiment, practice and make it my habit of mind….

 

Anu