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Perceptual Control Theory is rad. It’s providing a surprisingly elegant framework for understanding a lot of what I’ve been noodling on recently.
For example, much of what I’ve learned recently from @m_ashcroft about Alexander Technique fits rather neatly:
Rather than try to overrule your control systems directly, give them a new reference condition (direction) and better perceptual data (expanded awareness). Voila, non-doing!
But it’s also helping to clarify my thinking around interpersonal control systems.
You can frame parenting this way. The baby can’t keep herself ok all the time—part of that is my job.
You can frame parenting this way. The baby can’t keep herself ok all the time—part of that is my job.
Sometimes I do that by taking action on her error signals, e.g. picking her up when she cries.
Sometimes, I’m providing an error signal she’s missing, e.g. stopping her from chomping on an electrical cord.
Sometimes, I’m providing an error signal she’s missing, e.g. stopping her from chomping on an electrical cord.
So I’m both caregiver and teacher.
Teacher/student relationships can be so fraught, though. See, e.g., dharma news for the last N years. And due to some rocky experiences in my younger days, I’m leery of taking any particular human as a guru.
So how do I learn?
So how do I learn?
Well, PCT reframes from teacher to teaching: what can help me detect errors I’ll miss on my own?
And suddenly teachers abound. My husband is now a dharma teacher, because I trust him to show concern if I start drifting in a weird direction. My baby, my sister, my parents.
Twitter is a teacher, too, if somewhat in the crazy wisdom tradition. The library, full of breadcrumbs from past souls. The world is my teacher.
So thank you all.
So thank you all.
This is one of those ideas that’s so cleanly explanatory, a week from now I’ll forget I ever had to learn it. Gotta tweet em while they’re fresh.
