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You are Either Magical, Or You Are Not
Insight into a child’s power furnishes the material and becomes the starting point for all education.1
John Dewey
In spite of progress and advancements in technology and science, we feel more uncertain now than ever before. Many of us question whether it is possible to live and work together across cultural and ideological differences peacefully and constructively. Information travels at a rapid speed, and life can feel exhilarating, yet we long to slow down, to discover something deeper. Mostly, we want to feel like our life matters. In many ways, we are ripe for a new way of being, a new model for society. This requires a new education.
Over the last few decades, there has been an outpouring of information and research on how we are evolving as human beings. Important discoveries about human development, cognition and brain functioning are influencing every field. Social scientists have expanded our understanding of the nature of relationships, society and the impact of inequality on our overall well-being, our ability to trust, life expectancy, education performance and social mobility.2 When we stop to observe what is happening, we see two major trends driving our future. The first is the move toward contemplative practices, and the second is the desire for a more egalitarian society.
Teachers and practitioners have enormous influence, individually and collectively. We have wisdom and practical knowledge about human development, transformation and learning that is often left out of text books. Each of us has an important perspective, a wealth of information, a special talent and purpose. What John Dewey says is true—the natural starting point for education is insight into our power, which also sets the highest expectation for ourselves.
Not long ago, I asked one of my precocious teenage students, “What is your superpower?” She replied, “I don’t have a superpower.” “Really?” I asked. I could hardly hold back a smile. I knew this girl was a talented poet. “Come on,” I pushed, “think about it. What is your power?” When she came up blank again, I asked, “Why didn’t you say writing?” “Writing? Writing is not a superpower,” she replied matter-of-factly, “writing is easy.”
Naturally, we associate power with something out of the ordinary, something supernatural or that requires great effort. We also have a tendency to think power comes from somewhere out there. The truth is, our real source of power comes from the natural resources we are given at birth—our talent, our predispositions, and our innate gifts. Some powers are easy to notice, like Mozart’s gift for music. Others take time to surface. Parents can usually spot their child’s power very early on.
A superpower is a seed, an innate talent that leads us to experience joy and fulfillment. It can be cultivated and recognized by others with discipline and practice. You can have a natural talent for singing, for example, but if you don’t practice and cultivate it, it will never be realized to the level of mastery. When you dedicate your life to cultivating and mastering your natural talent or superpower, you are choosing a life of happiness and satisfaction.
What is Your Power?
Many adults have superpowers that lie dormant. Layers of life experience can pull us away from our greatest resource. The following questions can help us rediscover or affirm our power:
♦ What are you naturally good at?
♦ What do you enjoy that gives you a sense of satisfaction?
♦ What do you spend time fine-tuning and perfecting?
♦ What would improve the world?
When I posed these questions to a group of education practitioners, I got an amazing assortment of answers. Here are a few:
Teacher #1
What are you naturally good at? Helping others
What do you enjoy that gives you a sense of satisfaction? Teaching my students how to read
What do you spend time fine-tuning and perfecting? Preparing better lessons using hands-on experiences
What would improve the world? Having more compassionate people
Professor
What are you naturally good at? Making complicated concepts easy to understand
What do you enjoy that gives you a sense of satisfaction? Interacting with students
What do you spend time fine-tuning and perfecting? Making learning fun
What would improve the world? Being enthusiastic and passionate
Consultant/Specialist
What are you naturally good at? Sports
What do you enjoy that gives you a sense of satisfaction? Teaching mindfulness
What do you spend time fine-tuning and perfecting? Photography
What would improve the world? Peace and loving-kindness
Mentor/Coach
What are you naturally good at? Having deep conversations and thinking about solutions to problems
What do you enjoy that gives you a sense of satisfaction? Traveling and meeting new people
What do you spend time fine-tuning and perfecting? Understanding race and other social constructs
What would improve the world? Learning how to work together across race and difference
Leader
What are you naturally good at? Listening and being with children
What do you enjoy that gives you a sense of satisfaction? Helping teachers, parents and students
What do you spend time fine-tuning and perfecting? Life balance and mental health
What would improve the world? Inner peace and acceptance of differences
As you review these answers, you can begin to see how Questions 1 and 2 combine to reveal a Power, and the remaining two questions refer to the “how,” which is our Practice, and the “why,” which is our Purpose. Playing around with these questions to come up with a Power to Purpose statement helps you align your power to your life’s work. Our power increases when we realize its utility. Coming up with a Power to Purpose statement is the first step in understanding how all self-actualization leads to something of value in society.
Consider this framing: “This is who I am and what I love and this is how I can be useful to the world.”
Here are some example Power to Purpose statements from the sample group.
Teacher: I help others engage in reading by creating hands-on experiences so that through reading, they learn compassion and understanding of others.
Professor: I make complicated concepts easy to understand by building relationships with students and making learning fun so that they will experience enthusiasm and passion for life.
Consultant/Specialist: I teach about the importance of mindfulness in sports by displaying and analyzing photographs of athletes interacting with each other in training and on the field
Mentor/Coach: I organize opportunities for people to come together to solve problems and reflect on how we can better work together across race and other differences.
Leader: I listen carefully to children in order to gain insight into how we can create school communities that promote well-being, inner peace and acceptance.
Activity
Power to Purpose
Purpose: To determine your superpower and articulate a Power to Purpose statement so that learning starts from this premise
♦ Read the four questions, and contemplate them in silence for 5 min before writing anything down.
What are you naturally good at?
What do you enjoy that gives you a sense of satisfaction?
What do you spend time fine-tuning and perfecting?
What would improve the world?
♦ After you write your answers, come up with a Power to Purpose Statement.
♦ If you are working with a partner, consider exchanging your answers to the four questions, and let your partner come up with a Power to Purpose statement...
