A Thought
A Break From Graduate School
I took a break from graduate school during the end of last year, despite having spent the better part of a decade trying to figure out what combination of joy and practicality I could find available in the higher education space. I had recently failed my marketing course, despite having spent so much time in the industry, and was relatively shaky in terms of confidence that I had what it took to succeed.
School had always been a way for me to measure the value of my achievements because of its relatively structured feedback on performance. If I understood something about the way the world worked well enough, then I would advance, and a failure meant that I was missing something important. Despite having been out of the lecture hall for so many years, I found that failing a course that was so fundamental to my career had me second guessing myself, as if I was still in undergrad.
During my break, I was able to take a step back from the rigors of study to enjoy aspects of life that weren’t directly connected to the rigid structures of my degree. I was able to travel a bit, finish the manuscript of my novel after so much time editing and refining the story, and got married. It was filled with joy and excitement without being tied directly to a framework that required me to advance, and that lack of structured feedback helped reframe the experience for me in a useful way now that I’m back.
Everyone says that failure doesn’t define you, and it’s certainly true; setbacks aren’t necessarily signs that you’re doing the wrong thing, just that you may need to pivot in your approach. However, there’s a world of difference between having an intellectual understanding that setbacks are inevitable and having to experience the setback. It’s far easier to theorize than it is to implement those theories once you’re able to see what you’re working with on the ground.
Now that I’m back in class, I find it easier to put a little distance between my studies and myself. There’s still an eagerness to learn new things, but it’s with the understanding that theory only carries us so far in the world, and things may not line up perfectly when we’re at the point of implementation. That setback may require a pivot, but it also means that there’s a new opportunity to take a breath before continuing on the next stage of your adventure.
A Reflection
Consider the Apple Barrel
I’ve been thinking about a lot recently about systems and the people that operate them. This is partly due to my graduate program, partially because the world of current events are offering opportunities to think through the theories I’m presented with, and partly because I had quite an interest in psychology when I was in college (and still do, if I’m honest).
There’s an idea that bad actors can make other people behave badly within an organization, and that’s usually summed up in the idiom “One bad apple will spoil the bunch.” Some evidence suggests that this can, in fact, be the case since people who are ineffective or displaying anti-authority behaviors can impact the productivity of the teams they’re on. However, psychologists discovered some time ago that it’s not always the fault of a single bad actor that leads an organization to be ineffective; sometimes it’s the entire system surrounding the people that can make them bad.
If you were curious about why culinary-inspired idioms are bad management practices, it’s worth checking out the full breakdown I provide. But if you’re pressed for time, here are the highlights:
Bad actors don’t see themselves as bad; they’re often just doing their best.
We don’t always take the time to see from another’s perspective because it takes work, and often resources we don’t have.
Systems are a lot harder to change than people, so they’re more likely to turn a good apple bad than vice versa
Collective soft power serves as a way of keeping people compliant within a flawed system, even when better tools or processes could boost the wellbeing of everyone.
A Feel Good Place
Spending Time at La Colombe
La Colombe Coffee Roasters has been a staple of Philadelphia for as long as I could remember, but as a native, it sometimes felt like a piece of the scenery. I grew up thinking that it was far better to grab coffee at home rather than going out, and only later in life found a bit more joy in going to cafes for their own sake rather than trying to economize at every opportunity.
When I met my wife, I was living in Fishtown, not far from the original headquarters of La Colombe. After a visit, we became regulars there when we were looking for a breakfast or brunch option that didn’t require a prolonged sit-down. Over time, I came to realize that there was more to the experience than simple breakfast, so I wrote about it for a Feel Good Friday post on LinkedIn.
Want to find out what I learned when I delved into the history of a local coffeeshop favorite?
Something Read
SLOW HORSES BY MICK HERRON
Slough House is where MI5 misfits go to have their careers die. One major mess up lands trained intelligence officers in a mountain of paperwork and pointless intelligence assessments in the hope that they’ll some day make it back to Regents Park despite the fact that everyone in the service refers to them as “Slow Horses.” However, when the nephew of a foreign national is kidnapped and the Slow Horses are implicated, Jackson Lamb and his band of misfits have a chance that even slow horses deserve an opportunity to flex their muscle.
For Casual Readers: The book will likely appeal to anyone who’s interested in spy thrillers or books that rely heavily on dark humor. It would be especially enjoyable for those who are tired of seeing spies as superhuman, and would rather have a suite of more relatable characters to engage with.
For Writers: The book offers a great example of how to evoke political situations without detracting from the main storyline. Writers could also benefit from the way Herron includes dark humor in his story, using his wit to add levity to situations without taking away from their severity or intensity. He also does a phenomenal job of centering human fallibility, even when the story is about allegedly superhuman individuals like spies.
What Comes Next
The next issue is already being built out, but if you’re interested, here’s what you can expect from the next newsletter:
A discussion of one way writing can be approached in the age of AI
A meditation and theory for how to approach organizational work in the face of mass disruption
A review of a book about art, friendship, and grief
Finally, while this project may be a space where I share some of the things I have been thinking of, I also want to make sure it delivers value for you. So if you have feedback on what you would like to see, let me know and your recommendation may make it into the next issue.
