Dear HIPSters:
Thanks for your feedback on Post 31: The doors we open and close. I always appreciate hearing from you.
In this post & as we approach the end of January, I wanted to share in Good Stuff #2 — a book, documentary, and an organization, to support New Year’s intentions. At the end of January, as my schedule reboots and life picks up again, it can be helpful to refuel.
My intentions this year are pretty simple:
Read more books
Create more stuff
Waste less energy
Before rolling….I found this piece (“Why you should plan to get less done”) on goal setting from David Epstein timely and helpful for thinking about “reigning in” or adjusting expectations for myself.
Epstein describes a phenomenon called the “planning fallacy”— when we focus on best-case scenarios and tend to underestimate the time & energy needed to complete our to-do lists.
So, “less is more” remains a mantra I’m leaning into for 20241.
If some of my resolutions happen to align with yours, perhaps you will find fuel here to sustain, build on, or spark your new year.
(BTW, here’s a link to The Good Stuff #1)
1. To scroll or not to scroll?
From the minute we awaken to the alarm on one digital device, through the attention-switching checks in fifteen-minute-or-less intervals on multiple other devices throughout the day, to the last minutes before we sleep when we perform our final “virtuous” sweep of email to prepare for the next day, we inhabit a world of distraction
- Dr. Maryanne Wolf
Since 2010, my wife and I have raised our children (and ourselves) in a world that is increasingly digital, virtual, and screen-based. We have frequent conversations around the dinner table about the real or imagined impact personal technology (e.g., screens) is having on our own and our children’s attention spans and capacity to think critically and deeply.
When I came across the work of Dr. Maryanne Wolf, who is now the Director of the Center for Dyslexia, Diverse Learners, and Social Justice at UCLA, a light bulb went on.
Dr. Wolf has written numerous books and hundreds of academic articles to understand the effects of technology on our brains. Her work is featured in national media outlets & podcasts.
Her 2018 book, The Reading Brain in a Digital World offered me an accessible and compelling explanation of why technology may be impacting my ability to read and think critically.
The book is made up of eight letters that skillfully braid decades of research & personal anecdotes from Dr. Wolf’s career exploring subtle and seismic shifts she has observed in literacy, reading, and our engagement with screen vs. print-based mediums.
Her book connected the dots for me between how, why, and what happens in our minds when we choose to consume text digitally on a phone or tablet versus a book or other printed medium. Dr. Wolf also doesn’t discount or vilify technology but instead raises thoughtful questions about the trade-offs we may not even be aware of as we scroll in the early morning hours (not me!).
Here’s a line from the opening of her book:
My (8) letters are also an invitation to look at other changes, more subtle ones, and consider whether you have moved unware, away from the home that reading once was for you. For most of us changes have begun.
Dr. Wolff’s work has given me fuel to scroll less and pick up (and finish) a few more books in 2024 — beyond my screen and news feeds.
Note: I’m aware you are likely reading this on a device or scrolling ;-)
2. Can’t stop the feeling!
I think it's important for people to stay human and remember that genuine human connection is more fulfilling than anything that technology has to offer. We all have it within us, and music is something that can bring that out of us.
- Jon Batiste
I first encountered Jon Batiste when he and his band, Stay Human, became Stephen Colbert’s house band.
Shortly afterward, Batiste was nominated for 11 Grammys, topping Justin Bieber, Olivia Rodrigo, and Billie Elish among others.
American Symphony (2023) documents the meteoric rise of Batiste and the story of his wife, Suleika Jaouad’s extraordinary battle with leukemia. The filmmakers accrued a breath-taking 1,500 hours of footage or about 62 days of film.
The final movie runs just under two hours.
Matthew Heineman, the director, captured a range of poignant moments in this documentary, including Batiste sitting for 95 seconds of silence, alone onstage, at his piano, in front of a live audience, before he finally begins playing a piece dedicated to Jaouad.
It’s hard to categorize Batiste as a musician because he integrates so many different musical traditions into his work. Since learning more about his journey from New Orleans to the Juilliard School of Music and then on to the Stephen Colbert Show, I’ve become a huge fan of his eclectic and inclusive approach to expressing himself through music, writing, film scores, and acting.
The documentary gave me new insights into his creative process, with clips from rehearsals and an amazing, front-row seat for a one-night performance he gave at Carnegie Hall (i.e. title of the movie). At this show, Batiste is surrounded by an incredibly diverse and talented mix of musicians who bring together many elements of American music past and present (Spoiler alert: the power goes out during the show).
At his core, Batiste is a creative and gentle force. Batiste’s amazing body of work (so far) has given me fuel for my intention to create more in 2024.
What we love about music is not that it sounds good. What we love about music is that it sounds inevitable. It's playing the thing that we all know is unfolding. Whether we want to accept it or not. And it's there always. You just need to harness it. Be open to it.
- Jon Batiste from the documentary, American Symphony (2023)
3. Go FORTH and be electric
Okay, so the last Good Stuff item doesn’t require fuel.
Forth is a Portland-based organization whose mission is to electrify transportation by bringing people together to create solutions that reduce pollution and barriers to access.
Part of what attracted me to Forth is its relentless focus on access and adoption of electric cars and charging stations. Forth also has focused on how to shift mindsets to rapidly scale up the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) in the US, far beyond a 30-second Super Bowl commercial.
Since we purchased an electric car in 2018, I have become a convert and wondered why so few people I know drive EVs. I appreciate that Forth is getting more people to test drive these cars and advocating for state and federal incentives to address cost barriers to purchasing EVs. They are also helping lots of states build out their charging infrastructure and capacity.
A part of Forth’s approach I admire is how they are seeking to engage with people across the US in conversations about their lifestyle, values, and perception of automobiles and transit.
Here’s a list2 of what people are saying could tip the balance to go with an EV over a gas-powered car:
Free public charging stations: 50%
Tax rebates at the time of purchase or lease: 53%
Ability to charge it where I live: 47%
Discounts to install a home charger: 49%
Easy access to fast-charging public stations to fully recharge in under 30 minutes: 45%
Tax credits applied later: 45%
Overall, Forth’s efforts seem to be paying off, but the larger picture is not so bright (yet).
Reports indicate that the sales of EVs in the U.S. almost doubled between 2020-2021 from 308,000 to over 600,000.
However, EVs account for about 2.2% of all vehicles manufactured, meaning that there is only one car for every 250 standard models.
Tesla recently announced Model Y electric SUV was the top-selling vehicle in the world, car or truck, electric or not (sold 1.2 million cars) in 2023.
Oregon is doing well!
I am excited to see organizations like Forth in my corner of the world moving the needle on a technology that needs to be scaled up before we can reap the environmental benefits of this green technology. Forth seems to have found a formula that is working.
I hope this edition of the Good Stuff offers you additional fuel for the year ahead.
I’d love to hear what is fueling your tanks or intentions that I could share with HIPS readers.
Feel free to leave comments or fuel ideas here to share with other HIPS readers.
If you are new to HIPS or received this from a friend, please consider subscribing to get the latest updates.
Until next time, be well and stay curious.
The 80/20 rule is also a compelling idea to explore or apply. Put simply, the 80-20 rule states that 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes.
https://www.nyserda.ny.gov/Featured-Stories/Top-5-Reasons-Drivers-Are-Choosing-EVs