We live in a SURFACE-focused world today. Society rewards physical beauty because it is easy to note the appearance of a beautiful person quickly. Wealth is admired because nice cars, expensive clothes, and huge homes are impossible to overlook. SURFACE is easy.
Twenty-first-century technology cultivates limited attention spans, and studies estimate that since the year 2000, the human attention span has decreased by one-third, from 12 seconds to 8 seconds. Social media ignites rapid-fire emotional responses based on a comment, a few sentences, or an image or two. Short video clips engage targeted areas in our brain wired to react to visual stimuli. Our brains are built to respond to the SURFACE. We make snap judgments on limited amounts of information. We do this unconsciously all day long, and it is one of the reasons we have managed to survive for thousands of years. While we can't and shouldn't ignore the SURFACE, it never tells the entire story. True knowledge can only be gained once we go through the SURFACE and understand the SUBSTANCE.
People usually like the SURFACE because it reinforces what we already believe and is not threatening. The SURFACE does not pressure the closely held belief system much of our world is constructed upon, so we observe SURFACE level structures to avoid the threat of new knowledge that becomes unearthed when we search for SUBSTANCE. In examining SUBSTANCE, we might find facts that counter deeply held beliefs. This threat to our pre-conceived notion of the truth would require additional work to re-construct new views and beliefs. Again, all of this is lots of work. So, we take the easy path and stay focused on the less threatening SURFACE.
Buck O'Neal was the first African American baseball coach in the major leagues. At the age of 93, he was attending a baseball game with an author writing a book about his life. As the two men watched the game, a player went to toss a ball to a kid at the end of the inning. Immediately, a grown man jumped in front of the kid, snatching the prized ball away from the young fan. The crowd booed and yelled with disdain at the ball thief. As the reporter expressed his anger, Buck smiled and told the reporter to be easy on the guy that maybe he has a kid at home and the ball is for his kid. The reporter quickly asked, well, why isn't his kid here. To that, Mr. O'Neal suggested that maybe his child is sick. The reporter was taken back by the positive intent Buck kept in light of the damning evidence at hand.
Buck knew the power in SUBSTANCE and did not let the allure of the SURFACE inform his judgment. He remained detached from the influence of the SURFACE. If you care about SUBSTANCE, here are the key steps to get to the SUBSTANCE:
1. Assume positive INTENT – It is easy to get caught up in how something looks.
2. ASK specific questions – To get to the substance, you need to dig. The intellectual equivalent of "digging" is to ask questions to understand.
3. Give some GRACE – People are messy. We aren't perfect, and mistakes are common. More importantly, mistakes are required to learn a new skill. If you can't make mistakes, you will never try. Grace is the key to help facilitate new behaviors.
4. Pay Attention to your HOT BUTTONS – We all have biases. So, if you find a topic, a person, or a situation that makes you irrationally angry, be aware. It is doubtful the SUBSTANCE is creating this instant reaction, so push past the SURFACE and see what is brewing below.
5. Focus on the FACTS, not the FEELINGS - Our obsession with the SURFACE is driven by our feelings and the only counter to the powerful force of feelings are facts. Facts are not typically evident at the SURFACE level, so you must be intentional in your effort to find them.
The best part about focusing on SUBSTANCE over SURFACE is that getting to the SUBSTANCE increases our ability to remain consistently happy. SUBSTANCE satisfies. The SURFACE triggers our emotions and leaves us in a constant state of emotional judgment. While the SURFACE might offer temporary pleasure, it ultimately leaves us empty. This emptiness forces us to move from one SURFACE to the next, never staying long enough to do the hard work to search for the SUBSTANCE. Be mindful of your natural avoidance of SUBSTANCE. The work required to uncover SUBSTANCE is well worth the effort.