Maybe I'm normal

A normal donut, 3D render cc-by Laura Hilliger

I've written and spoken a lot about the social and cultural norms that shape our lives and behaviours. We all have beliefs we take to be self-evident and correct. Things that are so embedded in our belief system, we just never took 3 seconds to consider something different. What surprises me about this is how seldom people seem to grasp this fact of life. I once had a 16 year old yell at me that capitalism was the only system that worked and history had proven it. I didn't have time to debate the idea that capitalism works just then, and I'm pretty sure that kid is going to grow up to be a corporate shill. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Individualism is and has been studied. It is difficult to consider the collective because our neural pathways since birth (for most Westerns anyway) have been formed around ideas of uniqueness. We are preened for competition. Survival of the fittest and all that.

People think that the only way to run a democracy is with elections or that the only way to prove you've learned something is with a degree. But there are many ways to skin a cat.

Open Recognition is for Every Type of Workplace > https://blog.weareopen.coop/open-recognition-is-for-every-type-of-workplace-a7533f3f75e7
Open Education Global podcast with yours truly > https://podcast.oeglobal.org/2022/12/16/voices-46/
Demands & Responsibilities > https://www.laurahilliger.com/writing/demands-and-responsibilities/
The Case for Abolishing Elections > https://www.bostonreview.net/articles/the-case-for-abolishing-elections/
There’s More Than One Way To Skin A Cat – Origin & Meaning > https://grammarhow.com/theres-more-than-one-way-to-skin-a-cat-origin-meaning/

Maybe I need help?

It'd be great if someone would just make a step by step plan for me. My website and my brain are both a mess. My motivation, ambition and general productivity and understanding are mired in the fog. Just letting you know, I still don't know what I'm doing.

It was my first week back at work, so of course I didn't get my routines in order. I didn't collect insights or ideas to write about. I basically stared at client projects and tried to remember what I'm doing. I'm pleased that past-Laura did some planning, but I'll be damned if I can get into her head... Next week I'm traveling to the Netherlands for the first WAO meetup since pre-pandemic times. I'm hoping that an IRL work event will jump start me.

I don't know if you paid any attention to the CES this year, but it's Friday so maybe you want to give your brain a break and scroll through the gadgets:

The Best, Coolest, and Weirdest Gadgets at CES 2023 > https://gizmodo.com/the-best-coolest-and-weirdest-gadgets-at-ces-2023-1849957334
The Absolute Worst CES Tech We've Seen in the Last 25 Years > https://www.cnet.com/tech/computing/top-10-worst-ces-products-of-the-21st-century/

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