WHOLLY HOLISTICS

by Katherine Tandy Brown

pleasant – when one chooses to accept the fact that often, when confronted with one of life’s tricky situations or encountering a circumstance I’m not too familiar with, there’s actually more than one way of looking at it or thinking about it. Increasing your ability to see the world from many perspectives – or at least from more than one – helps to broaden your worldview, which can increase your capacity to understand and can make meeting with and working with folks who are different than you easier.

“We grow up to respect the gray,” says columnist Richard Cohen. “Black or white, one or the other, is childish. It represents the worldview of someone who does not know the world.”

Don’t misunderstand his viewpoint. He’s not referring to race here, but to different views of a situation. “Black or white” could mean how someone perceives a particular issue, situation, or idea, for example. To them, it’s one way or the other, with no room for shades of gray. These are people who might say, “It’s my way or the highway,” or “If you’re not with me, you’re agin’ (i.e. against) me.” Pointing out a best case scenario, Cohen proffers that as we grow, hopefully, we learn enough about life to understand that in many situations, there’s not necessarily a good or bad, or a right or wrong side.

Says blockchain expert and securities attorney Alexandra Damsker, “Your thinking will always be limited to your own opinions and experience. So expand your worldview, experience, and opinions as much as possible.”

Her recommendations: Listen when people speak, rather than waiting to talk. Give your opinions, engage in arguments, and revise your perspectives. Seek out people with different backgrounds than yours. Take an art class, a comedy class, or go to concerts you'd usually skip.

“Be in your world,” she says.

Attending that funeral, a kind I’d never before experienced, changed my life for the better. Take a chance and try something new. You’ll likely grow from it.