I have a love/hate relationship with algorithms.
I love that it is easier now than ever to find information and content I like and want more of. I hate that it is harder than ever to get out of that loop, and that my attention span and ability to focus feels significantly diminished.
No, that’s not age (for my family members who subscribe to this newsletter).
Like most readers, I feel this despite having spent a career practicing to be present in the outdoors. I can’t imagine being a teenager right now. Their brains are being wired by algorithmic content from the start. Bill Burnett at Stanford calls it "Down Head Syndrome," the modern condition of staring at screens and missing the world happening around you.
Our brains have entire systems designed for wonder and curiosity, and for a lot of people, those systems aren’t getting much exercise.
This part of the changing risk landscape doesn’t change much for OAE programs and operations or risk management (at least not that I want to talk about this week).
I think it changes how we talk about our programs. We’ve always struggled for relevancy and value in the eyes of our clients and society. And, enrollment is a real issue, and leads to numerous downstream safety issues (enrollment is a risk management issue…gotta keep those numbers up).
OAE has long focused on presence, mindfulness, and harnessing the power of awe and natural wonder. That’s our work, and we’re pretty good at it. I still remember a profound moment as a student on a 3-day solo… just from simply watching the ants crawl over the leaves for hours, minding their business of building their colony… just being with them and noticing their world.
I suspect that most parents feel this, too. They see it in their kids, and they feel it in themselves, and they know first-hand how hard it is to harness and hold attention, and recapture (and hold) natural awe and wonder.
Our field can name that pain point and, in turn, offer something real.
Too often, outdoor programs are seen as vitamins. They’re “nice to haves” and are good for enrichment, but they’re not essential to a child’s development or education.
We can help by presenting programs as the prescription. The experiences we offer, sustained attention, presence, real human connection in real places, are not bonus features. They are things that a growing body of research says young people are missing and need.
If your program is still talking about itself like a vitamin, it might be time to rethink how you make the case.
Stu
P.S. Bill Burnett's new book with Dave Evans is How to Live a Meaningful Life.