Letting Go of Expectations
October 24, 2002

Tuesday night’s class began as it usually does with lots of chatter and Punya going over last week’s discussion topics and what is coming up. The group “Instant Karma” showed some of the “I switched” video ads from Apple and then led us in a brainstorming activity to decide on what topic we would create our own “I switched” video. The activity was fun and creating the video was good experience for all of us as well as providing good laughs for everyone.

The readings for last week and this week were interesting to me. I did have a hard time printing out the two Root-Bernstein chapters and I have a difficult time reading articles on-line, but managed to get through both of them.

In Root-Bernstein “Sparks of Genius” we are given thirteen thinking tools of the world’s most creative people. These tools include: observing, imaging, abstracting, recognizing patterns, forming patterns, analogizing, body thinking, empathizing, dimensional thinking, modeling, playing, transforming and synthesizing. I happen to know some extremely talented and creative people and it was easy to see many of these qualities in each of them. I would suggest however, that a fourteenth tool be included in this list…that of letting go of expectations. This “letting go” is a hard thing for many if not most people, so I will address several questions that may help you to see why I think letting go of expectations can be the key to unleashing our best creativity and why it should be included in this list of tools.

What are expectations? Why do we have them in the first place? What do they do for us? How does letting go of expectations impact us and specifically with regard to creativity?

What are expectations? Expectations as defined by Merriam-Webster on-line dictionary: http://www.m-w.com/home.htm

Main Entry: ex•pec•ta•tion
Pronunciation: "ek-"spek-'tA-sh&n, ik-
Function: noun
Date: 1540
1 : the act or state of expecting : ANTICIPATION
2 a : something expected <not up to expectations> b : basis for expecting : ASSURANCE <they have every expectation of success> c : prospects of inheritance -- usually used in plural
3 : the state of being expected

Why do we have expectations in the first place? So…we all have expectations right? We have expectations in the first place because we learn to have to have them. It is not a conscious thing…they just happen based on our experiences. Even as children we learn to expect certain things. We expect to be taken care of. We expect our parents to be there for us. As adults the expectations continue. We expect to get into a certain college or we expect to get a certain job. We even expect a pay check for our work. Even in relationships…we typically begin without expectations… (that’s the courtship part where you just want to get to know someone) and then…if the relationship lasts…before you know it…there they are…expectations. He expects her to do the cleaning and the cooking or she expects him to take the trash out or mow the lawn. Okay…so these might be stereotypical examples, but I hope you get the point. I suppose these are all legitimate expectations and one cannot say they are not valid.

What do expectations do for us? Expectations serve a purpose for us. Some would say that without expectations, we wouldn’t be able to achieve goals. I think goals are different than expectations. Usually, expectations help us to…well…have a sense of what’s happening or what will happen in certain circumstances.

How does letting go of expectations impact us and specifically with regard to creativity?
In my experience, letting go of expectations is quite freeing. When you let go of expectations, you essentially open yourself up for anything. This is the scary part for most people because it is the unknown. For me, that is the cool part…I have no pre-conceived notions about what the experience will bring, no vision of how it will play out. Rather, the experience becomes the agent for the internal goods that Buchmann talks about. “Contemplation is an internal activity of looking that requires an agent but no outward effect or recipient; contemplating things, we aim to see them as they are.” Letting go of expectations allows us to truly live in the moment…to see things “as they are.” As teachers…we need to “let learn” Buchmann says, and “The teacher must be capable of being more teachable than the apprentices.” I propose that letting go of the expectations we have about teaching (be it a certain subject, or a specific lesson or how our students will receive the material, etc.) is the key to tapping into our own creative genius as teachers. Then and only then can we truly “let learn.”

So, maybe by now you are saying something like…” Hmmm…letting go of expectations is easier said than done.” After all, there are people like our bosses and the state who put all these expectations on us. We have to produce results. Well, this may be true…but I would argue that you will achieve greater results by letting go of the expectations. You will meet and far over-reach whatever the expectations are if you allow the experience to be whatever it is meant to be. Linda Volz is a teacher who was in the summer cohort. Some of you may know her form that class or perhaps CEP816 this semester. She teaches middle school Social Studies. She said, “The hell with the MEAP” I am going to teach this class and this information the best way I know how to do that. She focuses on her students. She focuses on her curriculum. She does not focus on the MEAP. She let go of the expectations. Ask her about how well her kids scored on that test. Their scores sky rocketed.

Bottom line: to achieve that state of creative understanding…all of the thinking tools mentioned by Root-Bernstein are effective, but I believe one more tool needs to be added…letting go of expectations.

This site talks about ways to kill a child’s creativity. Specifically, it mentions putting too high of expectations on the child.
http://www.uwsp.edu/education/lwilson/creativ/killers.htm

This site talks about the courage it takes to be creative and also about how you must be willing to “embrace the unknown, the mysterious, etc.” It also specifically deals with creativity in women.
http://www.creativitycentre.com/discussion.htm

This site talks about understanding children’s creativity. http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/rvp/pubaf/chronicle/v7/ja21/dacey.html

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