{"id":11467,"date":"2025-09-02T18:12:25","date_gmt":"2025-09-02T22:12:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/parmaks.com\/Resources\/bringing-goodwill-to-the-conversation\/"},"modified":"2025-09-02T18:12:25","modified_gmt":"2025-09-02T22:12:25","slug":"bringing-goodwill-to-the-conversation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/parmaks.com\/Resources\/bringing-goodwill-to-the-conversation\/","title":{"rendered":"Bringing goodwill to the conversation"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Profit<\/a>
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Education is distinct from learning. Organized education is a form of indoctrination and certification. Sometimes it leads to learning, but not always.<\/p>\n

You can win at education by figuring out what\u2019s on the test (or what the boss wants) and parroting it back. In fact, that\u2019s the easiest way to do so.<\/p>\n

Learning is an argument, a conversation designed to change minds. Learning happens long after we leave organized schooling, and it requires emotional enrollment. We\u2019re more likely to learn when we bring a desire to be transformed and to leave our previous assumptions behind.<\/p>\n

Amplified by social media, there\u2019s a rising tide of arguments that purport to be learning that actually lead nowhere. That\u2019s because the participants are seeking to score points and gain attention, not to enroll in a mutual process of transformation and learning. <\/p>\n

What does goodwill look like?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Be prepared (or better yet, eager) to change your mind. <\/p>\n

All claims should be verifiable.<\/p>\n

All assertions should be falsifiable.<\/p>\n

Do the reading.<\/p>\n

Show your work.<\/p>\n

Reveal your actual agenda.<\/p>\n

Understand the systems and mechanics at work, don\u2019t simply quote them.<\/p>\n

Assume goodwill on the part of others.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t judge an argument by how comfortable its conclusion feels.<\/p>\n

Question your own expertise. \u201cI don\u2019t know\u201d is a complete sentence.<\/p>\n

Engage with the strongest version of opposing views.<\/p>\n

Embrace that \u201cnot yet\u201d is different from \u201cnever.\u201d<\/p>\n

Celebrate your errors and welcome correction gracefully.<\/p>\n

Ask helpful questions that support an alternative view before deciding.<\/p>\n

Agree on the rules in advance and then honor them.<\/p>\n

Focus on understanding before seeking to be understood.<\/p>\n

Identify the ideas you are attached to and temporarily set them aside.<\/p>\n

Change your mind. That\u2019s why you\u2019re here.<\/em><\/p>\n

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[More riffs on learning as many of us go back to school<\/a>.]<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\tSeptember 2, 2025<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n