Ideology
There has been a LOT of talk about ideology leading up to the swearing in of our new President.
We have been treated to a number of philosophies from the campaign trail through Election Day, right up to today’s inauguration.
The difficulty with ideology is it’s a cemented point of view. The minute you commit, you are stuck. There is little room for flexibility once you marry a theory.
Ideology fragments reality and we attempt to extrapolate that fragment into a one-size-fits-all philosophy that has us miss quite a bit.
There is value to a point of view until that’s the only point you view it from. Then it becomes inflexible dogma that doesn’t encourage discussion but rather engenders argument.
When you dismiss another’s point of view out of hand, you are confined by your theory and incapable of stretching yourself to see another horizon. The world remained flat for Columbus’ detractors – a group of convinced ideologs.
I’ve quoted him before on this topic but it bears repeating. My departed mentor, Dr. Dave Dobson said,
“Theory is bullshit. Defending your theory is bullshit squared.”
Have the sensory acuity to notice that something isn’t working even if you have spent your whole life believing in it.
It takes courage to abandon a philosophy that you have argued for endlessly. It’s the type of courage it takes to leap from a burning building into a safety net below. If you don’t take the plunge, you get burned up as you argue for your position.
Theory is a great springboard to truth. Those who remain bouncing up and down on the diving board never dive into reality; they only pretend to know about it.
Is there an argument that you are making that is getting tired? Are you tired of defending a philosophy that isn’t working? Are you brave enough to blaze a new trail?
These are the questions. Your answers will either lead you to a pathway of growth, or left standing on a soapbox with an audience of one.
When your philosophy becomes more flexible, you get more peachy and less preachy.
All the best,
John
http://cdbaby.com/cd/johnmorgan
http://www.cafepress.com/grasshoppernote/3580301
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