Are you self-directed?

Welcome to the ArtsBound Newsletter. Every Tuesday, I share three thoughts or insights meant to help performing arts students and young professionals flourish in their life and career. Today we’re looking at what it means to do self-directed. We’ll cover: 1) the role of play in self-directed living and learning; 2) different expressions of self-direction; and 3) an example from my most recent guest from the ArtsBound Podcast. 

- 6-minute read -

(NOTE: I started ArtsBound because I believe the world would be a better place with more people living their true calling. If you know a student or young professional who is searching for their niche in the performing arts world, consider forwarding this email to them. If this email was forwarded to you, you can sign up to receive my newsletter every Tuesday. It's free.)

1. The role of play in self-directed living and learning.

Over the last decade, there has been growing attention to the importance of play in the development of the human brain. Much of that increase can be credited to Peter Gray Ph.D.. Gray is a key proponent of the Self-Directed Education movement and author of Free to Learn: Why Unleashing the Instinct to Play Will Make Our Children Happier, More Self-Reliant, and Better Students for Life.  

During the last several years of the eleven I spent teaching in the public schools, I increasingly felt that baked-in aspects of the school system were undermining my students’ ability to genuinely learn. I grew more and more disheartened and frustrated in my work. I shared my feelings with a friend who was familiar with Gray’s work, and after the third or fourth time she suggested I read his book, I finally went to the library.

Doing so changed my life.

Gray has a background as an evolutionary psychologist and neurobiologist and spent much of his early career studying learning in rats. He became interested in the educative instincts in humans after his pre-pubescent son, who was struggling against the conformity required by the modern classroom, told him and the school officials he was siding with to go to hell during a meeting in the principal’s office.

Through an exhaustive review of the anthropological literature on learning in hunter-gatherer societies and a case study of a school that aims to translate this type of learning environment to our contemporary society, Gray’s book provided me with explanations - emerging from the hard-wiring of our species - for every frustration I was experiencing as a teacher in the public school.  

In a nutshell, humans are built for play - kids and adults alike. 

I’ll cover Gray’s definition of play in the next topic. But for now, I’ll say this: play is inherently self-directed, it is the most effective vehicle for human learning, and the spirit of play must be present in the work of adults if that work is to be fulfilling and meaningful. 

(In his 16-minute talk for TEDxNavesink - which you can watch HERE - Gray gives an excellent summary of his research and its implications.)

Now, on to the ways play and self-direction may show up in your life...

2. Does being self-directed mean you have to be self-taught or self-employed?

At face value, some might interpret living a self-directed life to mean taking no directions from any other human being - a Walden Pond-type existence. Indeed, some who embrace self-direction and experience its benefits choose to be, more or less, self-taught and/or self-employed. But the majority still choose to engage with teachers and employers whom they trust and with whom they share values. 

The Alliance for Self-Directed Education (an organization Peter Gray helped to found) defines self-directed education in this way (paraphrased from their website):

Education is the sum of everything a person learns that enables that person to live a satisfying and meaningful life. Self-directed education is that which is derived from the self-chosen activities and life experiences of the person being educated.

This understanding of education played a major role in the development of ArtsBound’s philosophy and highly informs the work I do with my coaching clients.

In his anthropological review of learning in hunter-gatherer societies, Gray discovered that the children in these communities were basically free to play all day long, and it was through play that they obtain all of the cultural, technical, and economic knowledge and skill they would need to become a contributing member of the community.

Furthermore, adults in these societies approached their work in the spirit of play. 

Gray defines play as an activity that is:

1. Self-chosen and self-directed;

2. Motivated by means more than ends;

3. Guided by mental rules;

4. Characterized by the use of imagination; and

5. Conducted in an alert, active, but relatively unstressed frame of mind.

We know that play is educative, but the trouble is, our education system* and workplaces are not designed to foster play. Lessons are scripted. Employees are motivated by pay. Rules are handed down from people in authority.

Spaces that value self-directed principles replace authority with autonomy. 

When a topic isn’t compelling to a student, the teacher will work with the student to find something that is. Employees are encouraged to engage in work on their own terms. Learning and work are not compensated by grades and bonuses; instead, people are assured that they will have what they need, so creativity-killing incentives can be put out-of-mind.

This all sounds crazy to someone who grew up in a world in which teachers insist that students learn dictated content and employees slog through unsatisfying jobs with nothing but the thought of payday getting them through. 

But if you look at the science, it actually makes a lot of sense. 

And if you look around, you’ll find schools* and employers who have received the message and who have changed the structures of their organizations in accordance. Of course, these spaces exhibit principles of self-direction to varying degrees. I’m not sure there’s any corner of modern society that has totally detoxed from the authoritarianism we’ve been living with for centuries (if you are in a space that feels especially oppressive, you may find values in reading my article “5 Ways to Leave and Energy-Draining Environment at Work or School”). But in those spaces that honor self-directed principles, you are likely to find individuals who are more happy and engaged.

So, no. You don’t have to be self-taught or self-employed to be self-directed. You just need to make playfulness a part of your daily practice and check-in with yourself regularly to ensure that your education and/or work incorporate(s) activities that are of your own choosing!  

* It is interesting to note that gamification of lesson content has become a huge trend in education. Gamifying school activities may help to introduce some playful aspects into the lesson. However, since these activities are generally teacher-initiated, scripted, and reliant on incentives, they are not synonymous with play.  

3. Conversation with business owner, Jason Cook.

While it’s true that you don’t have to be totally self-taught or self-employed to be self-directed, Jason Cook - my most recent guest on the ArtsBound Podcast - is a good example of someone who is all three. 

Jason is a trusted luthier and the owner of Backstage Guitars in Pittsburgh. When he was in high school, he taught himself to play guitar, playing with a punk rock band that achieved regional success. As he navigated his post-college years, he dedicated himself to building an innovative, customer-centered guitar store while learning the art and science of guitar repair. He’s now the go-to guy for repairs among many local players (check out his Instagram to see some of his work!).

I’ve known Jason since middle school, and whether it was his sense of fashion or how he’d spend his free time, it’s safe to say that he’s always appreciated being his own boss. In our talk, Jason discusses the challenges and payoffs of owning your own business, as well as the important role artists play in society - a mandate to do what brings you alive!

Listen to our full conversation HERE.

See you next week!

Lee

PS - I started ArtsBound because I believe the world would be a better place with more people living their true calling. If you know a student or young professional who is searching for their niche in the performing arts world, consider forwarding this email to them. If this email was forwarded to you, you can sign up to receive my newsletter every Tuesday. It's free.