Reading an illuminating book in a time of isolation

A period of sheltering and isolation, which we’ve all been experiencing, is a good time to read.

Reading a good book is an excellent way to use quiet time and solitude to explore new ideas and encounter new experiences.

While my wife Sandy and I have been hibernating in our home, we’ve spent more time reading, including a recently published book that I highly recommend. It proposes a number of unusual, some would say radical, ideas, such as:

It’s all right not to finish what you started.

Listen carefully to people who disagree with you.

Short-term planning is better than long-term.

Making decisions is not as important as making sense.

Mental meandering is more important that intense specialization.

Who would make such outlandish statements? Who would support them with evidence?

David Epstein would, could and did—in his recently published book entitled “Range.” I was startled as much as anyone else to read these statements, which run counter to almost everything I’ve been hearing. But as I’ve read Epstein’s book to the end, I’m convinced he’s right in so many ways.

Once Epstein explains what he means, gives examples, cites research and provides evidence, I find myself saying, “Yes. Now that’s make sense.”

Epstein’s book, subtitled “Why Generalists Triumph in a World of Specialization,” also reinforced my belief that people today, especially students of all ages, need to have a broad education and need to be exposed to a variety of ideas and experiences.

I recommend this book to everyone, but especially to parents and educators of young children, teenagers and college students. Epstein argues, quite rightly I think, that young people should not limit their lives too soon and not specialize too quickly. Rather, they should be familiar with a wide range of knowledge, be willing to change directions and be open to the importance of their own varied experiences.

The complexity of our world, Epstein writes, requires that people acquire and then apply a broad spectrum of learning to the specific problems they encounter, especially the most difficult and challenging problems.

For the past 50 years, as a community college educator, I’ve stressed to everyone, especially students, the importance of what is frequently called general education or “G.E.” courses.

I’ve encouraged persons young and old to develop intellectual curiosity and learn about all kinds of subjects—in the sciences, arts, social sciences and humanities, as well as considering a variety of careers — from ag to law, from business to welding to medicine.

Intuitively, I’ve always felt it was important to be well-rounded in order to deal with the complexity of life. But in the last 20 years or so I have been more and more in the minority. “Experts” have said we should specialize quickly and stick to that specialization in order to be competitive in the current job market.

But Epstein shows in his book that the best leadership, the best decisions, the most significant innovations have come not from specialists but from “generalists” — people who have a wide range of knowledge and experiences in our increasingly complicated world. These generalists include people who have shifted their career focus as they’ve encountered new experiences.

Too often, Epstein writes, decisions are made by persons who have learned to think in only one way and surround themselves by others who think exactly like them. He writes that in business, as well as politics, the best decisions are made by people who understand there is ambiguity in life.

Good leaders, Epstein writes, recognize the need to surround themselves with independent thinkers who often disagree with them. These leaders listen to different perspectives before making a decision.

One example, among the many that Epstein gives, was the leader of the United States team that developed the rocket which propelled Americans to the moon. He continually listened to — and took note of — people who disagreed with his initial ideas, which he felt contributed to the success of the mission.

When it comes time to deciding on the best solution to a problem, Epstein encourages leaders in business, politics and education not so much to make decisions, as to make sense.

He cites the case of Paul Gleason, a leader in fighting the most difficult wildfires, who, instead of thinking in terms of “making a decision,” tries to “make sense” — an approach he believes is “more dynamic.” In this approach, Gleason says, “I listen and I can change” an initial decision and come up with a better one.

Epstein’s book is written smoothly and filled with many other intriguing ideas, as well as an abundance of specific examples. It’s a “page-turner” because every new page presents another idea or approach that at first startles and then makes sense.

Epstein’s concluding chapter provides some advice: “Don’t feel behind,” “head starts are overrated,” “no experience in your life is wasted” and “mental meandering and personal experimentation are sources of power.”

I hope many people read this book and expand their range and the range of others in their lives.

And I hope that you, dear reader, during these and other, less sequestered and troubled times, find books that inform, challenge or delight you.

John Spevak wrote this for the LB Enterprise. His email is john.spevak@gmail.com.