I recently listened to Sir Ken Robinson again, this time on an online TED video. Robinson is known for his focus on creativity and the individual differences of students. A memorable comment from the speech was the recommendation that we need to escape from “the tyranny of common sense.” That line has been haunting me since I heard it.
Often what we call common sense is an aggregate of averages. We observe, for instance, that are more jobs for computer technicians than glass blowers. “Common sense” then leads us to tell our children or students that “Glass blowing is a hobby, not a career.” Without intending to, we lie. There are jobs for glass blowers, and some people, think of Dale Chilhuly, for instance, achieve fame and fortune in glass blowing.
It is true that there are relatively few choreographers, puppeteers, astronauts, rodeo clowns, inventors, and luge athletes, but these opportunities do exist, as do a thousand other obscure, yet interesting, pursuits. By following a personal passion, people who do such things often build a life that is very satisfying, a reflection of their soul’s passion. Why do we feel compelled to tell people with goals like these that their ideas are foolish or impossible? Just because these jobs are statistically less frequent, tells us nothing about individual cases.
At other times, common sense is merely a statement of an adult’s preference. We say, “Sit still! You will not amount to anything if you don’t pay attention.” In real life, however, those people who couldn’t sit still as children play valuable roles. They run dance studios or karate schools, they become Marine colonels or Army sergeants; they build houses, run day care centers, summer camps or rock climbing schools. We may be unable, at 2 p.m. on some random Thursday, to project 15 years into a given child’s future, but that never means he has no future.
We are also fixated on what “everyone needs.” While everyone needs a basic understanding of the world around them, not all information has to be delivered and certified by a school. Most pool-playing champs use geometry every day, though they may never have passed a geometry class in high school. We are seeing a new movement toward self-education, where young people investigate their interests online or in informal apprenticeships and many of them succeed rather well. If this makes us nervous, we can think back to the self-education of Abraham Lincoln and recognize its value.
To me, the point is to respect the passions, interests and talents of each person we meet. “That will never work out,” is a demeaning statement. It implies that we know better than the person whose life choices are under discussion what that life should be. Saying “What a fascinating possibility!” and sincerely meaning it, allows for possibilities that “common sense” may deny.
