“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” – Attributed to Albert Einstein
The digital mindscape has brought misinformation, wrong-headedness, propaganda, and psychological manipulation to a level not even imagined by the visionary writer George Orwell in his prescient classic, 1984. When issues are complex, or concepts are abstract, metaphors are a cognitive tool that can help us distill and simplify the information. At a time when information changes rapidly and barrages us relentlessly, it is good practice to contemplate metaphors, not only for peace of mind, but to improve our capacity to change our thinking.
Module: YO-YO – Suspending and Deferring Your Voice of Judgment (VOJ)
You can go up and down and up down with an inner commentary, aka, a Voice of Judgment. Practice suspending or deferring the VOJ when you are contemplating new thoughts and fresh ideas.
Module: ACCORDION – Adjusting to Changes in Resources
Typically, when there is surplus, there is expansion; when there is scarcity, there is contraction. But remember the accordion, which makes music whether it is being squeezed or pulled.
Module: STUFFY – Finding Connection in the Digital Age
Get outside. Touch grass. Hug someone. The kind of connection the Digital Age enables isn’t a substitute for what we need as human beings.
Module: TEAPOT – Managing the Flow of a Digital Overload
Visuals, noise, information… dopamine hits and disturbing content… there’s too much “tea” and not enough “cup.” The digital ecosystem is designed to monopolize our attention — and there are limits to how much we can absorb.
Module: HORSE – Discerning What’s Real in the Digital Age
It sounds like a horse, it even looks like a horse – but in the age of AI, how do you know if it is a real horse? What can you believe if not your own eyes and ears? The Digital Age requires us to use tools for understanding, like logic, critical thinking, and trust.
Module: COINS – Differentiating Worth vs Value
One coin is heavier and shinier; one coin is larger and older – so how do we determine their value, and what is the difference between value and worth? The importance we imbue versus a tangible measurement.
Module: BLACK SWAN – Reconciling the Unpredictable and GRAY RHINO – Acknowledging What’s Important
Europeans believed all swans were white until, in 1697, a Dutch explorer traveled to Australia and observed a black swan. This is the origin of the metaphor “black swan event” and the understanding that we don’t know what we don’t know – and can’t really predict what comes next.
A “gray rhino” is a metaphor for things we can see, and that we even acknowledge, but don’t do anything about. Like rhinos, these things are charging at us – making them threats that require action.
Module: PANDORA’S BOX – Enduring Hardships with Hope
In the myth of Pandora’s Box, all manner of evil and misery were unleashed into the human world – and yet hope remained in the box as a blessing amongst the curses. In a world of mounting miseries, what is the thing that gives you hope?
Module: NAILS – Individualism, Nonconformity, and the Attention Economy
There is an old Japanese proverb: “The nail that sticks out gets hammered down.” In the Attention Economy, the “thing” that sticks out gets eyeballs, engagement, clicks, and monetization.