Touching the heart with language
Read moreLast week, I wrote that narrative-based discourse is more effective than rational argumentation for convincing any audience. One of the primary reasons for this is simply that story reaches people on an emotional level. Only with story can we touch another human being’s head and heart simultaneously. The “head and heart” argument for narrative caused me to think also about
Story and persuasion
Read moreLast time, I wrote about how Tim Bilodeau of Medicines for Humanity came to understand that narrative-based speeches are the most effective way to reach an audience. This week, I explain this phenomenon in more detail and tell why I believe storytelling is a human being’s most effective tool for changing minds and moving others to action. How we convince
The struggles that build character and help us grow (cont.)
Read moreIn last week’s post, I outlined my belief that we grow ourselves and our brains by taking on challenges in areas that do not come easily to us. In part, I used my own business school education as a case in point, explaining that the learning which I found most satisfying seemed to come in subject areas where I had
Learning, struggling, building character, and expanding our minds
Read moreThis week, some brief—and a bit more personal—reflections on the value of our mental challenges and struggles, and how they help us develop our mental capacities. To paraphrase Khan Academy founder Sal Khan, modern research is demonstrating that our intelligence is not fixed. The more we challenge ourselves to learn in varying ways, and the more we struggle to acquire knowledge,
How to make our brains grow
Read moreFor a long time, I have believed that we learn the most from the tasks we struggle with, as opposed to those that might come easier to us. Of late, I have been reading about the importance of “growth mindsets” on learning. And, I have come to believe that teaching young people mindsets toward learning—character and grit when faced with difficult tasks,
Language learning and systems thinking
Read moreI’ve been reading a lot this week about language study and what some researchers and writers are discovering about its effect on the brain. (In a previous blog entry, I mentioned William Alexander’s Flirting with French, which has some surprising, medically-supported conclusions about how his brain changed after a year of intensive study.) As I continue to explore, and to reflect