Interrogating Beliefs: Conscious Recalibration of What's "True"

Take a moment and think of something that you used to believe, but now realize isn't quite true. Consider how your beliefs have changed over time: What do you think the purpose of teaching is? The best way to relate to others? Your role in life? How marriage works? What it would feel like to get the new job/car/house? When have you changed your mind in the wake of new information, new data, and/or new experiences?

Last week I wrote about values, including how they are different from beliefs. Beliefs tend to be changeable, while values remain relatively stable. For example, while I value spiritual connection, my belief about how to achieve that has changed throughout my lifetime, depending on culture and context, access to information, and personal experience. I used to believe that higher education was the best path to liberation for everyone; now I believe that it's possible for people to have successful, fulfilled, meaningful lives without a degree (and that a degree still creates more opportunities and strengthens critical thinking skills).

What we believe influences the choices we make every day. If we believe that we are unloveable, we will accept partners that don't fully commit. If we believe that the purpose of education is to fill students with predetermined facts we might make have a different assessment policy than if we believe the purpose of education is to empower students to create or co-create knowledge.

The Power of Belief

Beliefs can empower or limit us; the thinking, ego-driven mind tells us all kinds of stories about what is "true". If you believe that you need to be funny to be liked, how might that limit authentic connection? If you believe that people are inherently good or inherently bad, how might that affect the way you treat others and how they respond to you?

Conscious educators use their mindfulness skills to observe their thoughts, interrogate them, test them, and change them if presented with compelling new information. Observing without attachment can be a great way to begin uncovering which unconscious beliefs drive your behaviors.

Letting go of outworn beliefs can be deeply uncomfortable at first: some of our longest-standing beliefs are tied to our identity, our place in the world. We may have vehemently, publicly, repeatedly argued in favor of these beliefs. But being willing to interrogate and change our beliefs may just be the path to the empowerment, strength, connection and joy we deserve. How do you feel when your friend/partner/colleague takes on new information and changes their mind? Do you think they are weak for doing that? Or does it make you trust them more?

As transpersonal psychologist Catherine Auman says "the spiritual path is a long chain of one...humiliating realization after another". Growth requires humility. Growth requires the strength of vulnerability to sit with uncomfortable feelings, to admit that we might not have been quite right, and the empowerment and responsibility of changing our minds in the face of new information. Isn't that what we academics are supposed to do? Collect and analyze data to come to conclusions...not hang on to the original hypothesis no matter what the data say.

What Do You Believe About Your Role in Education?

What happens if you believe that to be a good educator you have to work evenings and weekends? What if you believe that you will never get a full-time job unless you prove your worth? What if you believe that it is your job to save all of your students? What if you believe that you have to say "yes" to everything in order to be valued? What if you believe that your worth is derived from your leadership positions? What if you believe that you have the right answers when no one else does?

I have seen so many colleagues over the years make themselves physically and/or mentally ill because they believe things that simply are not true. If you have ever had a conversation with me about teaching or seen me speak at a conference, you will know that I am passionate about feedback and grading: not only its central role in learning, but also how we need to liberate ourselves from outworn beliefs about the best way to give students feedback on their work. Peer feedback is fine. Limited feedback is fine. Feedback that takes several weeks and simply points out what's right and wrong is not fine. Feedback that you sacrificed your weekend with your family to provide is not fine. Outworn beliefs about how feedback works in learning make educators sick and do not serve students. Beliefs matter.

So What?

If you are beginning to suspect that you might be carrying some outworn or limiting beliefs, I invite you to consider the following:

• What do I believe about myself and my place in the world?

• What do I believe that my parents/family/caregivers did/do not?

• How are my beliefs shaped by the culture I exist in?

• Where are my beliefs in contrast to those around me?

• What would it take for me to change one or more of my beliefs?

• How I respond when confronted with evidence in opposition to my beliefs?

• Why is my belief about X so important to me?

• What relationship do my beliefs have to my values? my needs? my identity?

• How have my beliefs changed over time? Why or how did this happen? What do I make this mean about me?

If you would like investigate the power of beliefs on your professional or personal life you might do some or all of the following:

• Journal on the questions above and create some of your own questions about your beliefs.

• Explore how your beliefs are similar or different to people close to you; get curious about your family and friends' beliefs without needing to change their minds.

• Consider which beliefs are no longer serving you.

• Work with a therapist or coach to work through interrogating your beliefs (changing your beliefs can be a little destabilizing at first).

• Consider which beliefs you might be interested in testing to see if they still hold true.

I'm glad you read this today. I'm here to help.

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