The Right Kind of Structure
A lot of people get structure wrong.
General rule:
πΌπ π¦ππ’π π π‘ππ’ππ‘π’πππ ππππβπ‘ ππππ’π π‘ π‘π π£πππππππππ‘π¦ (ππππ¦ π€ππππ ππ π πππ€ πππ π‘πππππ ) π¦ππ’βππ πππππ π π‘ππ’ππ‘π’ππ π€ππππ. πΌπ π‘βπ πππ£πππ π, π¦ππ’βππ πππππ π π‘ππ’ππ‘π’ππ πππβπ‘.
Example:
Your approach to a type of situation (e.g. public speaking, writing, negotiating, etc.) should follow the same structure every time. In this way, one of two things will happen:
1) Each instance of the endeavor will be unique, interesting and bring novel insights (to both you and those listening to you);
2) Each instance will be a boring rehash of the same thing you always do.
#1 happens when the structure you implement is a βmeta structureβ, meaning the anchor points of your structure are agnostic to any specific instance, because all instances adhere to the structureβs universal truths.
#2 happens when the structure you implement is not meta but rather specific and detailed.
If someone gives you advice that essentially says βdo exactly what I do, follow my exact system, follow these specific steps, etc.β this is #2.
If someone gives advice that is robust to the individual doing it, essentially saying βwhatever you do expect to see this, youβre on the right track if this happens, etc.β this is #1.
Knowing an apple pie recipe does not make you a good baker. Knowing what all apple pie recipes have in common, does.
This is why nature uses meta structures to build our world. Specific detailed plans cannot work under real world complexity, and should be considered ineffective and (depending on the situation) even dangerous. Reaching into the system and attempting to arrange specific details will break any system as soon as an ounce of variability enters, which is inevitable.
You need structure. Structure brings meaning and utility to your life. But as you consider how to structure your life, make it of paramount concern to ensure your structures are meta structures, and robust to the variability of life.
