MONEY MADE FUN eBOOK
The motivaider: a great tool to keep you on track.
"Flexibility comes from having multiple choices; wisdom comes from having multiple perspectives."
In 1956, psychologist George A. Miller published a paper in the Psychological Review entitled "The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two" which suggested that the limits of 'absolute judgement' (our ability to accurately transmit and take in information) was approximately 7 unique bits of information.
For me, perhaps the most valuable application of Miller's 'Magical Number' is in understanding how it is possible for two people to view the exact same situation and come away with such completely different points of view about what actually happened.
Here are two stories which may serve to illustrate this point more clearly:
1. Pablo Picasso
The artist Pablo Picasso was travelling by train on a journey across Spain when he was recognized by one of his fellow passengers, a businessman who was used to getting his own way. After exchanging pleasantries, the businessman told Picasso that while he admired his success, he felt his paintings could be improved.
"How so?", replied the bemused Picasso.
"Well," the businessman began, "Your paintings are too abstract - you should paint things more as they really are."
"Could you explain more specifically what you mean?" asked Picasso politely.
"Certainly!" the businessman replied, pulling a small photo from out of his briefcase. "Look at this photograph of my wife. This is how she actually looks - not some silly stylized representation."
Picasso studied the photograph carefully for a few moments, then asked "This is how your wife actually looks?"
The businessman nodded proudly.
"She's very small," observed Picasso wryly.
2. The Blind Men and the Elephant (by John Godfrey Saxe)
It was six men of Indostan
To learning much inclined,
Who went to see the Elephant
(Though all of them were blind),
That each by observation
Might satisfy his mind
The First approached the Elephant,
And happening to fall
Against his broad and sturdy side,
At once began to bawl:
"God bless me! but the Elephant
Is very like a wall!"
The Second, feeling of the tusk,
Cried, "Ho! what have we here
So very round and smooth and sharp?
To me 'tis mighty clear
This wonder of an Elephant
Is very like a spear!"
The Third approached the animal,
And happening to take
The squirming trunk within his hands,
Thus boldly up and spake:
"I see," quoth he, "the Elephant
Is very like a snake!"
The Fourth reached out an eager hand,
And felt about the knee.
"What most this wondrous beast is like
Is mighty plain," quoth he;
"Tis clear enough the Elephant
Is very like a tree!"
The Fifth, who chanced to touch the ear,
Said: "E'en the blindest man
Can tell what this resembles most;
Deny the fact who can
This marvel of an Elephant
Is very like a fan!"
The Sixth no sooner had begun
About the beast to grope,
Than, seizing on the swinging tail
That fell within his scope,
"I see," quoth he, "the Elephant
Is very like a rope!"
And so these men of Indostan
Disputed loud and long,
Each in his own opinion
Exceeding stiff and strong,
Though each was partly in the right,
And all were in the wrong!
Moral:
So oft in theologic wars,
The disputants, I ween,
Rail on in utter ignorance
Of what each other mean,
And prate about an Elephant
Not one of them has seen!
This leads me to what I consider to be one of the most useful principles in effective communication, which I have taken to calling 'the Elephant Principle' in honor of the above poem:
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All perceptions are accurate and incomplete.
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Therefore, if we want to truly understand anything, we must be able to first gather multiple perceptions of whatever it is we want to understand. Each of the six men of Indostan were completely accurate in their perceptions, but we can see their 'blindness' because we are able to take in all of their points of view simultaneously without attempting to choose any one as the only 'right' perception.
While at first glance this may seem an innocuous idea, it's implications are far reaching. For example, how might you respond differently if you recognized that that person who is voting for a different candidate to you in the next election is not actually a moronic idiotic twit but rather someone who is making their best judgement based on unknowingly seeing only a small part of a vast and intricate picture?
How might you behave differently if you recognized that people (including you!) are physiologically incapable of seeing the whole picture all at once, and that the art of garnering multiple perspectives is both a a skill that needs to be consciously cultivated and a necessary part of effective decision making?
In today's experiment I will share with you some of my favorite tools for developing that skill, and in the WANT TO LEARN MORE? section I've listed additional resources for mastering the art and expressing your artistry...
Bonus Tip - Enhancing Communication with the Elephant Principle
One of the simplest tools for enhancing communication based on the Elephant Principle is the use of the phrase "yes, and...". Rather than dismissing what the other person has said in order to assert our own point of view (as we do when we use the more popular phrase "yes, but...") , "yes, and..." allows us to acknowledge the accuracy of the other person's statement while still providing an additional perspective of our own.
Although simply using the words "yes, and..." does not guarantee any greater wisdom will be called into play in the ensuing discussion, it does tend to diminish resistance to your point of view being heard and at least invites the possibility that ideas will continue to flow and the conversation will not degenerate into 'Word War III'.
Today's Experiment:
1. Just for today, deliberately read a magazine, listen to a talk show, or watch a TV show which espouses the opposite point of view to your own about an issue near and dear to your heart. Do your best to notice what is accurate about their point of view, regardless of how incomplete it may be. Ask yourself "If they weren't nuts, how would it be possible to believe what they believe?"
2. Use the phrase "yes, and..." in several conversations today. Notice how it affects flow and quality of conversation. (If you're up for it, deliberately use the phrase "yes, but..." and notice how it affects the flow and quality of conversation.)
3. Deliberately seek at least three different perspectives to your own on any issue you are considering having an opinion about. If you cannot find at least three people who have different perspectives to your own, consider broadening your circle of friends!
Have fun, learn heaps, and expand your wisdom...
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WANT TO LEARN MORE?
Here are some of my favorite resources for using the Elephant Principle in
your
work, relationships,and life...
Books and Audio Programs
*Prometheus Rising by Robert Anton Wilson
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1561840564/geniuscatalys-20
*Quantum Psychology by Robert Anton Wilson
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1561840718/geniuscatalys-20
*The 7 Myths of Success by Michael Neill (CD)
http://www.successmadefun.com/shop/7myths.php
*Trances People Live by Stephen Wolinsky
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/096261842X/geniuscatalys-20
*Turtles All the Way Down by Judith DeLozier and John Grinder
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1555520227/geniuscatalys-20
Related Tips
*More Curious Than Afraid
http://www.successmadefun.com/curious.htm
*Orr's Law
http://www.successmadefun.com/Orr.htm
*Question Storming
http://www.successmadefun.com/questions.htm
Websites
*BeliefNet
http://www.beliefnet.com
*Diversophy
http://www.diversophy.com
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