In each of these cases we brought our expectations of how the learning would progress. We brought the expectation that it would always be fun, engaging, and relevant. Sometimes our learning expectations do pan out, but when they don't we get discouraged and disappointed.
-Rather than being upset at how our expectations of learning this technology / methodology weren't met we can take a more mindful approach. We can see ourselves in the moment of learning and see if we're trying to bring more than our focused attention into the container. We can realize that learning is about changing ourselves and change is not always fun, engaging or pleasant. We can put aside our expectations and concentrate on the learning.
+Rather than being upset at how our expectations of learning this technology / methodology aren't being met we can take a more mindful approach. We can see ourselves in our moments of learning and notice if we're trying to bring more than our focused attention into the learning container. We can realize that learning is about changing ourselves and change is not always fun, engaging, or pleasant. We can put aside our expectations and concentrate on the learning itself.
-### FIXME
+That doesn't mean we shouldn't acknowledge our feelings. We should certainly feel the feelings of boredom, anxiety, disillusionment, and so on. But we should also be mindful of where those feelings come from. Are we truly bored or is this our mind trying to tell us to stop so we can do something more fun? Are we not engaged with this material because we don't find it relevant or are we looking to run to our distractions? Is this really a dead-end in our learning or are we just feeling stuck right now? Notice when the feeling comes up and be curious about what prompted the feeling. Note when you get the feeling and where you feel it most in your body. Stay with the feeling for a few seconds and keep noticing it. Then, continue your work. While you work keep noticing all of the feelings you're having and repeat the process of staying and noticing your feelings. When you're done you can reflect more on those feelings and make an honest determination of what those feelings are indicating. Through this process you can clarify what is causing those feelings and if they are just resistance to learning new material or a desire to run to distractions or something more familiar.
-That doesn't mean we shouldn't acknowledge our feelings. We can certainly feel the feelings of boredom, anxiety, disillusionment, and so on. But we can also be mindful of where those feelings come from. Are we truly bored or is this our mind trying to tell us to stop so we can do something more fun? Is this really a dead-end in our learning or are we just feeling stuck right now? Notice the feeling when it comes up and be curious about the feeling. Note when you get the feeling and where it is in your body. Then continue the work, continuing to notice all of the feelings you're having. When you're done you can reflect more on those feelings and make an honest determination of whether those feelings were the result of what you were learning or were because you're having doubts.
+### FIXME
If, however, you realize that you're really not enjoying the learning; if you feel like you're constantly having to muster the courage to sit and learn, then you may want to have an honest discussion with yourself about why you're learning this in the first place. Is this still relevant to you or has the moment passed? Are you learning this out of an obligation to yourself or others, and is that obligation still present? Are you trying to learn whatever it is because you're worried you'll be left behind, whether that's personally or professionally? Think about what brought you to start learning this and see if the situation has changed. If someone came up to your computer and asked you if you wanted to learn this would you still jump at the chance?
projects / themediocreprogrammer.git / commitdiff