War on Excellence

My oldest boy goes to college this September, he will be a freshman at the University of Oregon. He was not excited. He would rather bypass the next four years, just get a job and start earning. I am empathetic. But I also know college remains a critical rite of passage to show on theContinue reading “War on Excellence”

SITUATIONAL AWARENESS

Recursive attention: we pay attention to what others pay attention to. Think of any accident. Crowds form in part because when one person stops to watch, that attracts more people – the size of the group paying attention to the event increases the percentage that others will also pay attention. Inextricably related to what attracts our attentionContinue reading “SITUATIONAL AWARENESS”

(RE)FRAMING AIKIDO

Imitation may be the highest form of flattery but it is also a great way to learn. The monkey-see, monkey-do teaching combined with an interpretive gloss is how most of us are taught. Add physical manipulation and now you have a training method. In the Western tradition, the burden is on the teacher, even when done Socratically,Continue reading “(RE)FRAMING AIKIDO”