Life-changing ideas and insights from some of the world's greatest thinkers.
A pioneer, and leading authority on sleep research, Dr. William Dement said, ‘You’re not healthy, unless your sleep is healthy.’
We are all better than we know. If only we can be brought to realize this we may never again be prepared to settle for anything else.
When we mentor of for future growth, it’s far better to give young people experiences that show them they are capable of meeting the high standard with the appropriate support, rather than offering them unfounded assurances of their abilities—or, worse, hiding the standards from them altogether.
If young people’s brains seek social rewards—status, respect, prestige—and hope to avoid social failures—shame, humiliation, rejection—then we can turn these motivations into assets, not liabilities, for healthy development.
The mentor mindset transformed the lives of all young people and especially those who were marginalized by their race, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status.
I shall only ask him, and not teach him, and he shall share the enquiry with me.
Dobson called this solution a transparency statement: a simple and clear declaration of your intentions at the start of any potentially threatening interaction.
A [person] who becomes conscious of the responsibility [they] bear toward a human being who affectionately waits for [them], or to an unfinished work . . . knows the ‘why’ for [their] existence and will be able to bear almost any ‘how.’
By giving young people the thrilling opportunity to earn prestige—and satisfy their needs for status and respect—mentor-mindset leaders offer them the chance to feel amazing. Young people soon learn that if they want to keep feeling that way (and avoid feeling humiliated), they should follow the mentor-mindset leader. The enforcer- or protector-mindset leaders, by shaming, blaming, judging, evaluating, and controlling young people, deny the opportunity to earn prestige. That’s demotivating. The result is what Rosalie Wax saw on the reservation: passive or active teen rebellion.
The Maori tribe in New Zealand has a beautiful term for it: whakamana, which means ‘to give prestige to, give authority to, confirm, enable, authorize, legitimize, empower, validate.’ (Mana means ‘power,’ and whaka means ‘to give.’) Whakamana is what leaders need to do to resolve the adolescent predicament and satisfy young people’s sensitivity to status and respect.