Book 310 - A Year of Magical Learning

Reflection Title: The Omni-Value Dilemma!

Book – The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of 4 Meals by Michael Pollan (Part 1 of 2)

Book Description:

What should we have for dinner? Ten years ago, Michael Pollan confronted us with this seemingly simple question and, with The Omnivore’s Dilemma, his brilliant and eye-opening exploration of our food choices, demonstrated that how we answer it today may determine not only our health but our survival as a species. In the years since, Pollan’s revolutionary examination has changed the way Americans think about food. Bringing wide attention to the little-known but vitally important dimensions of food and agriculture in America, Pollan launched a national conversation about what we eat and the profound consequences that even the simplest everyday food choices have on both ourselves and the natural world. Ten years later, The Omnivore’s Dilemma continues to transform the way Americans think about the politics, perils, and pleasures of eating.

Reflection:

Michael Pollan does it again!

Thank you for your endless curiosity, willingness to go to great lengths to explore your own questions, and then having the ability to share your learnings with incredible detail and storytelling. This guy never lets me down. Consuming a Michael Pollan book is learning heaven for junkies like Emilia and myself. Every single time our paths cross we are left with a million new thoughts, questions, and ideas to explore…and it feels so good.

Let’s begin this reflection with a quick overview of what exactly is the Omnivore’s Dilemma in the first place. Humans are omnivores, meaning we can theoretically eat almost anything that we come across in this world to use for fuel to power our existence. Unlike, for example, the Koala Bear which has built a life around existing solely on eating and processing Eucalyptus leaves all day, we have options. The Koala Bear doesn’t have to think about what they eat, they just do it and that is that. Their dilemma is what happens if the Eucalyptus tree goes extinct? Our dilemma is more multi-faceted and mainly comes down to the question, if we can eat anything…what do we eat?

The good news is…We have options!

The bad news is…We have options!

In typical Chris and Emilia fashion, as we were listening to Michael Pollan discuss those options and share his point of view on the complexity of choices that surround our food consumption, my mind drifted to a conversation on what else…Values.

This book took me back to that feeling I had the day after Emilia passed away and I was left staring out over the charred rubble of my life that was remaining after the atomic blast that blew up my world. At this stage of my life, I literally could have gone in a million different directions. All options were on the table as to how my future might take shape. I remember metaphorically sitting in this rubble for many days, weeks, and months and feeling lost and going over a million questions in my mind. Why did this happen, where do I go from here, what is the point, and countless other similar questions that followed.

I felt stuck and frozen in the moment. The only thing I knew was that I needed to keep moving forward for my daughter, because that is what she would have done. Once my mind was made up to endure like Emilia, my all-consuming life dilemma became…what is the next step? I can do anything, but where do I go from here?

That is the amazing thing about humans, we are beings filled with options. The power of choice is one of our collective superpowers. Choice allows us to experiment, innovate, rapidly evolve, and move our species forward. Some of us make awful choices, and others stumble upon paths that help us to all collectively grow.

Options are great, but the problem is obvious, how do you choose what to do and how to live your life?

For me, the most important idea I’ve stumbled upon on this Year of Magical Learning is a framework to make navigating this complex life so much easier and putting you on a path toward fulfillment. That compass I use is my values.

The next question then naturally becomes, how do you pick your unique values to navigate this world? That is the Omni-Value Dilemma in a nutshell.

The Omni-Value Dilemma makes us ask the question, when you can do anything that your imagination can dream up, how do you decide what to do next?

While I don’t know anything, here is my best answer to this question. Life is all about energy. Either what you are doing is an energy source to fuel your forward, or it is an energy drain that keeps you stuck in neutral. When deciding on what to eat, always ask yourself the most basic question, does this food give me energy I want to fuel my day? That can be followed by further examination around does this food makes you feel good or bad after you consume it? Do you feel light or heavy? Fast or Slow? What food makes you feel disgust upon site, taste, sound, texture, etc? Our elephants have evolved to alert us to these feelings for a reason. Listen to your elephant and you will get your first clues on what you should and shouldn’t eat.

Values are no different. Values, like food, are another energy source to power your actions each day. They can either be the ultimate source of energy, or the ultimate drain on your batteries depending on what you choose.

So, ask yourself the simple question – are the actions that you are performing in this moment a source of good or bad energy? Your elephant will tell you the answer right away. Once you have those actions identified, then use your rider to dive deeper and figure out why and until you unlock the source code.

Once you have that source code of why that particular action made you feel a particular way, turn it into a word. That word that encapsulates that energy source is the value. Use that word as a way to guide your actions forward.

That is what Emilia taught me and how I ended up typing these words and sharing them with you today.

Let your values guide the way.

Question: How do you choose the values that matter most to you in this world?

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Links:

What is The Year of Magical Learning? An Introduction

YOML Podcast Discussion - Coming Soon

YOML Bookstore - The Ominvore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan