Commodifying the self never pays off. When we optimize every interaction with other people through strict agendas and goal-setting, we effectively limit growth opportunities. Growth only comes through people.
An imaginary person, locked in a room full of books, would only accumulate book knowledge, adding more facts to their intellectual faculty. Still, without people, that person will have no place to see meaning; meaning exists in open-ended, complex (surprising) moments.
The circularity is apparent; if we don’t give others an open minute, we mostly don’t give ourselves that space of curiosity. The worst thing to do with a complex, rich tapestry is to try to fit it into artificial goals and ignore all it may reveal or help develop.
After calculating how one uses minutes and transacts most efficiently, that person will inevitably wake up and realize that the foundations moved and are in a place they don’t want to be.
This week, I invite you to consider a moment that can benefit from an agenda-less (/open) interaction.