Living Questions
Growth is a slow process; almost unnoticeable to the individual growing. This is a paradox of human nature, the lack of self-awareness as the self evolves.
Human development has always been measured by physical characteristics over a timescale, namely a person’s age. Though these measures are accurate for early development through adolescence, they start to blur and lose relevance in the “adult” phase of life: where the body stops growing and social norms continue to shift. Long ago it might have been the case that the ability to wield an axe was sufficient to defend your land, but in today’s world, the maturation of the mind holds much more weight.
Questions are a good place to start. It's interesting to note how questions in your life change over time, providing valuable insight to the subtleties of yourself. Think back and it becomes quite apparent.
As a child, “what do you want to be when you grow up?” is a common question. In high school, you start to think about entering the “real world." Those who postpone this confrontation, by going to college, question their field of study to find out what will bring meaning to their life for years to come. Upon graduation, the question turns to places to live and work, i.e. “what are you doing with your life?” Put a high school senior, or even a college senior, with graduates who have been working for two years, and the topics of conversation will be in stark contrast. As you get older, the question becomes "what have you done in your life?"
Maybe these changes are obvious: thinking about the future, living in the present, and reflecting on the past. But consider what is asked of you, and why you are being asked; it is a way to measure what you have done, what you are doing, and how others see you.
In my view, you do not go from “young adult” to “adult” once you turn 30 or get a job, but when you stop asking your friends to sleep over, no questions asked.
My advice, surround yourself with people that bridge these mental gaps and can answer, or at least shed light on, the questions around you. A strong benefit of being a teacher is constantly dealing with fresh minds that are ready to be challenged, keeping the teachers young as they say. So talk to your siblings, parents, mentors, etc. The other piece of advice is to pay more attention to the questions around you. They are a good barometer for the trends in your life, and listening could be a good reality check.
Human development has always been measured by physical characteristics over a timescale, namely a person’s age. Though these measures are accurate for early development through adolescence, they start to blur and lose relevance in the “adult” phase of life: where the body stops growing and social norms continue to shift. Long ago it might have been the case that the ability to wield an axe was sufficient to defend your land, but in today’s world, the maturation of the mind holds much more weight.
Questions are a good place to start. It's interesting to note how questions in your life change over time, providing valuable insight to the subtleties of yourself. Think back and it becomes quite apparent.
As a child, “what do you want to be when you grow up?” is a common question. In high school, you start to think about entering the “real world." Those who postpone this confrontation, by going to college, question their field of study to find out what will bring meaning to their life for years to come. Upon graduation, the question turns to places to live and work, i.e. “what are you doing with your life?” Put a high school senior, or even a college senior, with graduates who have been working for two years, and the topics of conversation will be in stark contrast. As you get older, the question becomes "what have you done in your life?"
Maybe these changes are obvious: thinking about the future, living in the present, and reflecting on the past. But consider what is asked of you, and why you are being asked; it is a way to measure what you have done, what you are doing, and how others see you.
In my view, you do not go from “young adult” to “adult” once you turn 30 or get a job, but when you stop asking your friends to sleep over, no questions asked.
My advice, surround yourself with people that bridge these mental gaps and can answer, or at least shed light on, the questions around you. A strong benefit of being a teacher is constantly dealing with fresh minds that are ready to be challenged, keeping the teachers young as they say. So talk to your siblings, parents, mentors, etc. The other piece of advice is to pay more attention to the questions around you. They are a good barometer for the trends in your life, and listening could be a good reality check.
