Adventure Labels and Attentions

We’ve been analyzing different rating systems, and there seem to be two types of labels. Closed labels describe something in a fixed, narrow category. Open labels are an unfinished spectrum. Adventures inspire us to live with the ambiguity of open labels and focus our attention more on growth and understanding than pigeonholing. That shift in labeling might be part of the reason why everything seems more interesting when we travel. Here’s a little more along those lines…

283 words, < 2 minutes

Adventures ignite our attention. When we break our routines, we open the door to curiosity, notice new things, and engage with the world. We come alive.

Attention makes everything more interesting.

But, time and attention are limited. To make our lives easier we categorize, compare, and use labels.

We become label-making machines striving to organize information into a database of this or that. We compress diversity, use stereotypes, and make shortcuts and assumptions that we rarely update. If we aren’t careful, our labels become closed, shallow, and surprisingly subjective.

When was the last time you heard someone dismiss a dragonfly as a bug and miss seeing how its four wings transform it into a tiny magical dragon that can zoom in any direction?

How do you explain the taste of food?

How often have you described something as hard, easy, hot, or cold?

Have you ever cringed when someone quickly introduced you to a stranger?

Life is complicated, and we need shortcuts. Labels help us make meaning and build understanding. However, closed labels can also stop us from exploring beyond a minimum basic understanding, and that’s a shame.

Attention creates space for greater appreciation.

New experiences and adventures focus our attention and remind us that we can’t be lazy with our labels. We know that the more we dismiss, the more we miss, and that’s not only dangerous but boring. So we notice more things and all-of-a-sudden we’re having more fun.

We don’t have to wait for an adventure to break our routines. Reality is our perceptions and biases, and we can shatter old labels anytime and change how we see the world.

Opening ourselves to the joy of discovery makes everything a little more interesting.