Praxis
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The Life of a Praxian – Praxis Wednesday Response
Last night was Praxis Wednesday. It was a module wrap up call. For both small group discussion portions, I found my self in groups where for the first time I was the one furthest along in the program. I enjoyed passing on things I learned and gaining some new inspiration from fresh voices. It was interesting to hear how new developments in the curriculum are changing the program for the better. Namely, Praxis has introduced Slack to the program which I, at this point, I believe was a great decision. I will also say that I have liked the change because it helps me to communicate more effectively with everyone else…
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Philosophy Module Week 3
A Whole Lot of Culture…and Lecturing 17 hours later and I’m DONE. I just finished Paul A. Cantor’s lecture series on Commerce and Culture. It was good but lengthy. From Shakespeare to video games to the Casablanca movie. Cantor spoke on how culture, art, economics and the market work together, and what viewpoints have produced the best results over time. A consistent theme was that art thrives in the free market. Another consistent idea presented was that art has changed over time, and it has almost always concerned people as it changes. Art created in a free, or commercial market means that artists have incentive to create art that people…
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Define Your Terms – Praxis Wednesday Response
Last night our module got to speak with James Walpole. Although it was really just a conversation between the four of us on the call I found a few notes to take away and appreciated the discussion overall. Something that stuck out to me was when James mentioned defining your terms. This further confirmed a debate/argument technique that I had actually heard before from some of my favorite political thinkers. It ensures you are speaking about the same things, and that you know what the other person is talking about and arguing for or against. Another favorite point from the conversation was that if you use a fallacy admit it…
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Thinking in a Group – Praxis Wednesday Response
When it comes to processing philosophy last night’s group session was helpful for me. We got the chance to talk through confusing terms, and talk about our experience with the material as a whole thus far. I enjoyed talking through the ideas with the others. Exchanging ideas with others is helpful to me, especially since our group is so small. By starting with a mutual understanding that we all want to learn from the current module I think we avoid the perils of groupthink. I appreciate Praxis Wednesdays overall, even if I do struggle with concentrating during some of the large group ones. Now I’m looking forward to placement at my apprenticeship.…
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Praxis Module 4 Week 1 Analysis
This month I’m in the philosophy module with Praxis that I’ve alluded to in other blog posts this month. Another part of the module is to record analysis videos each week. I’ve already learned a lot about philosophy and I’m curious to learn more and gain a better appreciation for this field. See the video link below if you’d like.
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Why Good Salesmen are Not the Enemy
Ever since seeing people selling things at my door and my parent’s getting telemarketing calls on the land line ,and believe it or not, taking a sales class in college, I’ve had a sour taste in my mouth for sales, and although I don’t think I want it to be my job -because I love marketing- I think I now see the value in it, especially in business. Last night’s Praxis Wednesday was all about sales and we were joined by Jack Sayler he talked about the art and science behind the sales industry. We were encouraged to think about solutions ourselves before going to managers, this helps you be…
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Arguments Aren’t What You Think They Are
My latest Praxis lesson talked about the actual prerequisites required to develop an argument and what an argument actually is. An argument is the idea that backs up a claim which is a determined side of an issue, you need both an issue and a claim to have an arugment. I can sometimes be argumentative, and for a while I was led to believe that this was mostly bad. This isn’t true at all, in fact -one could argue- you are making a claim if you aren’t stating an explanation, question, command, phrase, or pronouncement; and if you are making a claim you should therefore have an argument to back…
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Consider the Unlikely, Sometimes.
Hypotheticals in philosophy are part of the reason I’ve been frustrated by philosophy in the past. My latest Praxis lesson was how to navigate hypotheticals, and appreciated that the article acknowledged that some hypotheticals are not helpful and do not need to be analyzed. Others, though, provide an opportunity for us as people to think about where our convictions and beliefs lie. Good hypotheticals are qualified by two very different functions. Either they devise practical contingency or the help to achieve intellectual clarity. The first helps us consider different options while the other clears up different points of view and what they might mean – in a nutshell. So now…
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So I Guess I’m a Philosopher?
Based on my latest Praxis lesson, I’ve been thinking about what philosophy is and what it means to study it. Based on the definitions I heard from others in the lesson, I came up with my own definition: The considering and thinking of all the possibilities and reasons for what happens in the world. It’s an imperfect, and incomplete definition, but I’m starting my first philosophy “class” this month so I’m giving myself breathing room on this. I plan to come up with something new at the class -er- month’s end. A different but equal definition of philosophy is a love of knowledge and learning. I believe I qualify for this but…
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A Legend and Me – Praxis Wednesday Response
During last night’s Praxis Wednesday all of us participants got the privilege of listening to and talking with Christopher Lochhead. He’s the author of Niche Down, among other titles. We got the chance to hear about some of his favorite points from the book, as well as what he was thinking it could do for our group. He talked about different legends he had met in his lifetime, and how he went about naming his famous podcast. He knew he wanted to include the word legends, and a friend thought of adding losers, Christopher was sold on the concept, and legends and losers was born. He made an interesting point…
