A Thlog of the First-Order!

     This week went fairly well in class, but I've really found myself quite distracted by life as of late, and haven't been quite as dedicated to the writing process as I really should be. However, the other areas of my life that I have been pursuing do involve a good amount of writing, just not in the traditional sense.
     Earlier in the quarter, we learned about the differences between first and second order thinking, and I really took this lesson to heart, finding it increasingly useful in most areas of my life. Having the ability to put my thoughts into writing and record my ideas immediately and without discrimination has made a world of difference in the way that I approach problem solving and creative planning in every context. I have been using a program called Evernote to keep track of all my random thoughts, compiling them all into once place from which I can draw inspiration and find nuggets of wisdom that I never would have even put into writing without the use of first-order thinking. By putting my ideas into words without a second thought, I am better able to develop plans and ideas with a serious amount of depth. This is because my immediate recording allows me to ride my wave of momentum in thinking without stopping to edit and analyze every little detail, a skill which we learned to become aware of in this class. I cannot even to begin to express how great of an application this approach continues to have in all areas of my life, and am quite grateful to have learned to identify and utilize this style of thinking. This technique has enabled me to uncover new meaning and avoid stifling the lines of thought which I would have otherwise lost, and lead to profound effects on my efficiency as a student and learner. Thanks for that, Brofessor!
     I know I didn't hit on much of what we discussed in class this week, but I found it absolutely necessary to describe the ongoing effects of a key concept introduced earlier in the course. Still, I did enjoy the mind mapping/clustering idea that we went over in class, and have already began to implement it into my writing process. Here's to another great week ahead!