concepts & development

 
When my son was five years old he was obsessed with superheroes. One afternoon as we watched an old James Bond  film he became puzzled by how an ordinary mortal with no obvious superhero powers could still beat the ‘baddies‘. Later when it came to re-enacting the scenes with me as the bad guy, he asked what was Bond’s secret power. My reply was intended to show that there is more to being a hero than just being strong. I explained to my son that because Bond was a clever man he could ‘use his head’ to defeat his enemies. He thought about this for a few seconds then proceeded to execute a perfect head butt right onto the bridge of my nose. As I conceded the contest he made a mental note that this was indeed a good method and worth remembering for future use. My good intentions had brought about the opposite effect.

We all interpret advice and information according to our unique view of the world. In our minds it all makes sense. Yet when we come to apply our wisdom, we may be surprised that others often view it differently. How we assimilate facts depends on our current level of knowledge and as this changes so should our understanding. Unfortunately this is not always true if we ‘close our minds’ to concepts that appear different to our own. When this happens we cease to develop because ultimately it is concepts that determine our actions – if these stay the same, so do we.

Charles Pierce, an American philosopher, defined the four ways we come to ‘know’ a fact. The first is that of tenacity where we hold onto an idea or viewpoint because through our own experience we know it to be true. As the naming of the method implies we will continue to cling to this viewpoint even when presented with concrete evidence to the contrary, for example those who believe the Earth is flat or that Arsenal are a good football team! Sorry just a frustrated Birmingham City supporter speaking here.

The second is that of authority where we will accept a belief because someone we respect has told us this is true, such as a parent or teacher. For example, a teacher may have told us to sit up straight in class and as a young child we duly accepted the idea that we had to stiffen our backs and push the chest forward. We came to believe that in order to carry out the instruction to 'sit up straight' we had to do something extra - rather than to just stop slumping! How many of us keep applying this logic though out our lives? Do we do that something extra in response to an instruction from the coach, rather than examine whether we are already doing too much to prevent a technique from executing itself? 

The third is a priori, we believe in something because it appears to be self-evident. We may not be able to prove the theory but we may use the words ‘it stands to reason’ or ‘it makes sense’. However, as each person has a unique idea of what makes sense, two people may draw different conclusions from the same evidence. 

The fourth and last way of knowing is that of scientific inquiry, demanding proof beyond doubt and free of personal biases and beliefs. This knowledge needs to be applied purely without assumptions of the common-sense nature finding their way into our practice.

How many of our beliefs are the result of scientific inquiry? The majority of our accumulated knowledge comes via the first three ways of knowing and therefore cannot be proven to be accurate. Unfortunately we use this erroneous knowledge base for comparison and evaluation of new information. We reject new ideas if they appear to contradict our own. Likewise, if the new corresponds with what we already think we know, we accept it without question. In reality, most of us believe in what we want to believe regardless of the facts.

Yet real change and development can only happen if we can go into the unknown to move forward. Sounds dramatic but its true. Alexander would say to his pupils that you cannot achieve the unknown by doing only what you know! What we know and accept is based on our concepts and beliefs. So occasionally it may be worth making a quantum leap to try something new, even if initially it does not make 'sense'. This can help to broaden experience and move outside the artificial boundaries we unknowingly create with our comfortable habits.

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