Reading Time: 2 minutes

Note: This is a compilation of Frontier Friday, a weekly Substack published, originally released on 22 May 2021


PART I

  1. Frontiers Podcast is Back: There’s a Really Good Reason Why We Need Adjustable Seats
    Listen to this on wherever you listen to podcasts (SpotifyAppleRSS feeddirect from our site) and don’t forget to subscribe to stay updated. 
    Leave a comment so that I get to learn about your listening experience. 
     
  2. From the Frontiers: The Tyranny of Metrics
    When metrics are used wrongly, it can undermine human dignity. 
     
  3. Vanity Metrics
    Our obsession with metrics can lead us to measuring the wrong things. 
    And this comes at a cost. 
     
  4. Do Not Get Attached to the Outcome
    A fixation on outcomes can get in the way of outcomes.
     
  5. Words Worth Contemplating: 
    “What’s required in many situations is not more facts – we’re inundated already – but a better command of known facts.”
    Innumeracy,  by John Allen Paulos.

Reflection:

There are times when our best intentions does not translate to the the intended effect for the other person (e.g. disagreement, misunderstanding).

Recall a recent incident of this. 

Were your intentions clear? What got in the way? Were you able to hear the other person’s intentions as well?


PART II

  1. From My Desk: The Cobra Effect
    Instead of solving a problem, you end up amplifying the existing concern or worse, creating a new one. Thus, the law of unintended consequence was born. (Also known as the “Cobra effect”).
     
  2. The Paradox of Focusing on the Therapist
    We need more outrospection than introspection. 
     
  3. Book: Against Empathy
    Developmental Psychologist proposes that empathy is a leading motivator of inequality and immorality in society (I know, this sounds bizarre). 

    Key Grafs:
    – empathy shines the light on a narrow area and ignores the rest 
    – Empathy is innumerate. We empathize with one girl… Put her brother and 10 others in the same situation, your empathy for that girl drops
     
  4. Listen: The Backfire Effect
    From the You are Not So Smart Podcast, this 3-part series on the backfire effect is so interesting!

    When a strong-yet-erroneous, belief is challenged, yes, you might experience some temporary weakening of your convictions, some softening of your certainty, but most people rebound from that and not only reassert their original belief at its original strength, but go beyond that and dig in their heels, deepening their resolve over the long run. 
     
  5. Words Worth Contemplating: 
    “You waste years by not being able to waste hours.”
    Long-time collaborator of Daniel Kahneman, the late Amos Tversky.

Reflection:

In the last week, how much time did you give to yourself to recharge, to recoup, to recover, to rediscover… to recreate?

Do we protect time for this?


If you would like to learn more topics that can help your professional development, subscribe to the Frontiers of Psychotherapist Development (FPD). On Frontiers Friday (FPD), we serve you directly to your Inbox highly curated recommendations each week.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.