3a2 - Use MOCs to overcome mental squeeze points
- A Mental Squeeze Point is ==when your unsorted knowledge becomes so messy it overwhelms and discourages you.== Either you are equipped with frameworks to overcome the squeeze point, or you are discouraged and possibly abandon your project.
- This is usually followed by yet another search for the next app that will make all the difference.
- Many mental squeeze points are actually ==emotions.== It’s something you feel, whether or not you’re consciously aware of it. Try to be. Try to be aware of when you feel discouraged, or overwhelmed, or disappointed with yourself, or unhappy with your efforts. It’s possible that’s the form that the mental squeeze point has taken.
- Perhaps the best way to overcome these squeeze points are to ==create a new safe space to assemble and organize the knowledge you’re currently working on==—before it completely overwhelms you. That dedicated space for thinking is called an MOC (Map of Content).
- Develop your ability to detect mental squeeze points
- Try to develop your awareness—your intuition—to notice when you are heading towards a mental squeeze point. Become your own “canary in the coal mine”.
# An MOC is a dedicated space for thinking.
- In such a space we can:
- overcome the mental squeeze point
- maximize quality thought collisions
- and progressively build ideas
- A dedicated space for thinking should have: curated attendance that is tightly concentrated. It allows for the interaction and development of related thoughts and ideas…into individual, clear assertions…arranged in a way…that brings about emergence. (Remember, emergence is when the whole has new properties and is greater than the sum of its parts.)
# Salons act as a dedicated space for thinking
- A salon is a ==tightly concentrated gathering of people.== During the curated event, participants entertain one another and increase their knowledge through presentations and conversations.
- This free exchange of ideas creates the environment for a more intense exchange of ideas—one filled with arguments and debates. The result for engaged members is a feeling of enrichment. They leave with ideas that are sharpened and refined through a form of conversational battle.
- In an MOC, it’s not a gathering of people, it’s a ==gathering of ideas.== In this dedicated space, we see how ideas interact with one another. We see how they work together or against each other. But we don’t just see these relationships; we develop them.
This idea of “dedicated space for thinking” isn’t new. We create these spaces for ourselves everywhere…from going for a walk, to meditating or praying, to having a conversation with someone else.