How We Think
Carrots. Asteroids. Humanity. It begins with a question or an idea that grips your imagination. How will we reach that asteroid? How will we feed the hungry in Kentucky while reducing food waste? How will we address inequities through public health initiatives in Chicago? The challenge might seem insurmountable in scope—an entrenched social injustice, a shortage of global resources, a citizenry hungry for food. Sometimes the question is posed by someone else, and you know in your heart the solution will lay dormant without you. So the question provokes, nags, inspires, becomes an ineluctable presence in your life. It fixes a vision in your mind of “What if?” and won’t let go until it becomes “How?” and “That’s how.” Pioneers ask big, purposeful questions. But, more to the point, they’re not afraid of jumping in to answer them. They’re able and willing to take risks and give the marrow of themselves as they serve as the catalyst. Where does this come from: this intertwining of deft ability to think strategically, creatively and connectedly; the confidence to take action; a willingness to change with a changing world; and the empathy that compels Pioneers to think beyond themselves? Professor Tim Soulis points to the “ability to think metaphorically,” to see new associations, “to link together ideas that were formerly disconnected and unrelated.” How else can new solutions be found? Part of the DNA of our liberal arts tradition at Transy is a
