Tag: context

The Common Code

I consider myself a communication enthusiast.

This might seem intuitive, given my background. My bachelor’s degree is in communications. I spent nearly three years as a TV news producer. I’ve shared my thoughts for years on Words of the West.

Yet, my passion for communication goes far deeper.

I am fascinated by languages. I learned Spanish in school, and I do my best to stay proficient in it. I also enjoy listening to languages I don’t speak — Italian, French, German, Japanese, Chinese — and picking up on the different patterns between tongues.

I enjoy web coding. I’ve become ensconced with HTML, CSS and JavaScript. The ability to change the look and feel of an online asset with a set of keystrokes is as fascinating as it is terrifying.

And I enjoy numbers. I consider the ability to solve problems and make predictions using a universal ruleset to be eye opening. And the impact these actions have had on our understanding of the world continues to inspire me.

Language. Web code. Numbers.

These seem to be a diverging diaspora at first. A set of interests that stray further and further from my passion for the written word.

And yet, I feel they are intrinsically linked.

You see, I view all of these disciplines as communication subsets. While each subset has its own context, they share a common purpose.

Language, web coding and numbers all serve as information transfer protocols. They all represent actions that lead to intended responses.

One can speak numbers just as well as one can speak with prose. And the impact of sharing this information can be just as profound.

Yet, these talents are not universal. We don’t have the innate ability to understand language, code websites or solve algebra problems.

Such abilities must be learned. We must put in hours upon hours of practice to gain proficiency.

This is no easy task. It’s rife with false starts, growing pains and frustration.

But when we attain mastery, we enter an exclusive club. We gain the ability to share information with others who are just as proficient. And we can use these powers to connect, collaborate and achieve.

This is the holy grail of communication.

It’s the backbone of human development. The neural network that drives innovation. The key to unlock that which has long been beyond our comprehension.

Communication, in all its forms, is essential to success. Albert Einstein couldn’t have shared the theory of relativity without the vehicle of math. Google and Amazon couldn’t have changed the way we search and shop without a code standard in place.

Yes, it can be frustrating that the protocols are scattered. That Portuguese is incompatible with Korean. That HTML code is different than algebraic expressions.

But those divisions can be a blessing in disguise.

They allow for context-specific innovation. Innovation that is first incubated within a particular culture or area of expertise.  Innovation that can only be shared outside of these circles with those who make the effort to learn the underlying protocols.

I believe this arrangement allows for greater diversity of thought. I believe it provides for a wider expansion of ideas than would be possible if everything was under one unifying code.

And for the intellectually curious, this arrangement ignites the passion to keep exploring. To learn, grow and discover.

These benefits overshadow the inconveniences of the communication diaspora. They underline both a common truth, and a call to action.

Communication, in all its contexts, is worth understanding.

Let’s expand our horizons.

The Context of Focus

A few months ago, a received a compliment that totally floored me.

I was told I had a great ability to focus.

I was caught off guard by this comment, because this was a trait I didn’t quite see in myself.

I’m notoriously self-critical, and don’t like to dwell on my strengths. But I do know what they are.

Or, at least I thought I knew what they were.

Now, I’m reconsidering.

You see, I’ve long bemoaned my lack of focus, more than anything. I’ve considered my struggles reading books or maintaining attention when watching TV at home. And I’ve dwelled on the trouble I’ve had conversing with others with a lot of noise and movement around me.

This regret has eaten away at me, like a powerful acid.

After all, focus is my goal. A laser-targeted focus could help me achieve my objectives more efficiently and effectively.

I’ve likened this idyllic focus to being early-career Tiger Woods on the golf course.

Tiger had an uncanny ability to tune out all the noise around him and hone in on the task at hand. It helped him dominate a field of the world’s best golfers and tame the toughest courses — even in the harshest of conditions.

I’ve actually experienced this sensation of hyper focus before — although not on Sunday at The Masters, with the whole world watching. And not for as prolonged a period.

No, this sensation has come when I was in what some psychologists call a flow state. That’s a period where all distractions and time melt away. A period where one can truly hone on what needs to be done, and then execute upon it.

As a control enthusiast and intensely task-motivated person, I consider flow states to be pure gold. They are the essence of my greatest productivity.

But they’re also highly elusive. I can’t just snap into one on command.

And that constraint has darkened my entire outlook on the subject of focus.

It’s led to consternation when I’ve struggled to get more than a chapter into a book. It’s caused queasiness every time I’ve found myself paying more attention to the conversations around me than the task at hand. And it evoked dismay and disappointment when the writing of this very article spilled into a second day.

In short, it’s what’s led me to consider focus a personal liability for many years.

But now I wonder, do I have it all wrong?

Perhaps the young lady who lauded my ability to focus was right. For, in certain scenarios, I clearly can stay locked in. I certainly can execute on my objectives with ruthless efficiency in those moments.

I’ve demonstrated this many times throughout my life. And I most assuredly wouldn’t be where I am today if I hadn’t.

But truth be told, I’m not the only one with these abilities. Surely, we each have our moments of focused brilliance, just as Tiger Woods once did on the links.

The key word here is moments. For focus is context-specific.

None of us can stay hyper-focused all the time. If we did, we wouldn’t be human.

So instead, we operate in waves. Of productivity and aloofness. Of efficiency and inefficiency. Of good days and bad ones.

This is the natural balance of our lives. And the sooner we get accustomed to it, the better.

There’s no point in trying to own every moment. It sets the bar far above what’s realistically achievable and only sets us up for disappointment. I know this as much as anyone.

Better to own the moments that mean the most.

Focus matters. But context matters more.