Friday's Findings: 07.22.2022

1. Video I watched and book I’m listening to…

I’m about halfway through a book titled Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know, by Adam Grant (Thank you, Robin P.!). I wanted to share a bit about it, and found this very well-done video on YouTube summarizing the book. At a time when we are holding tight to our long-held beliefs… no matter what… keeping an open mind, hearing what others have to say, and remaining curious is a GREAT idea. There is a lot of preaching… prosecuting… and politicking going on these days (see the video below or read the book for more on those). Are you doing it also? Could it be hindering you from getting to the truth? The author, Adam Grant, encourages you to ask this question… “Do I value feeling right… or being right?” I will be reviewing some long-held beliefs. I will also make sure my mind is open for a change in those beliefs. I’ll start with Grant’s suggestion to start writing down Things I don’t know and Things I’ve learned lately.

2. Great event that occurred last week…

The Ohio State Waterski Team hosted a special event, called AmpuSki, to help people with physical disabilities get out on the water and ski. My daughter, Quincy (who skis on the OSU team), was telling me stories about the day that were AMAZING! I asked her to write a quick paragraph about the day. Here is what she wrote… “AmpuSki is an event that allows people with physical disabilities or limited motion to waterski. Usually, this event is all day, but due to rain, we couldn’t start until 1:00 pm. Some of the volunteers made lunch, and we all ate first and then started unpacking the trailer. Adaptive Sports Connection, the company that puts on this event, had many different kinds of skis for people with different disabilities. They had different sized cages, which are seats that attach to the ski, and “training skis” which attach to the side of the ski, making it more difficult to fall. The people participating had varying levels of comfort on the water, from never skiing before to participating almost annually. My teammates were in the water by the dock, helping people into the water and holding the ski steady to help them get up if needed. They also caught the skier when the boat was coming back to the dock. There were also people on the dock helping to set up the skis and make sure the skier was comfortable and positioned correctly. I was on the boat in case a skier fell and needed help getting their ski back on or getting up. It was incredibly impressive what these skiers could do with limited motion, and I got to see how excited and happy they were throughout the experience. One boy kept begging to speed up or go over our 5 foot ramp. One woman was working on her 360 degree turn on the ski, and she was incredibly close. And another woman got over the wake for the first time and was smiling the entire time. Adaptive Sports Connection’s social media director decided last minute that she wanted to try skiing. She was able to go in and out of the wake, catch some air, and even got up on her own. Skiing has had such a positive impact on my life, and I couldn’t imagine not doing it. It was incredible to share the same experience and excitement with the participants of AmpuSki. They were excited, happy, extremely brave, and very inspiring.”