17 September 2022
Francis Sparshott (1926-2015), whom I never knew, was a University of Toronto professor, author, and poet. His work came to me on the recommendation of Dr. John Russon, with whom I have studied. For a few years, passages from Sparshott’s book, Taking Life Seriously, have grabbed my attention, including the title of this blog.
The title sentence appears in the section of the book characterizing Aristotle’s approach to a good life and to his study of philosophy. The passage is about the Greek word spoudaios.
“But what exactly does this word mean? Literally and etymologically it means ‘serious’ or ‘earnest’ or ‘zealous’: being full of spoudē, which is ‘zeal.’ To be good at something, whether it be guitar playing or life as a whole, you have to take it seriously, work at it; and people who take things seriously in any field are themselves taken seriously, they are serious musicians, serious people” (Sparshott, 1996, p. 50).
While there’s an elitist prejudice in there, there’s also an argument worth exploring.
In his next paragraphs, Sparshott argued for deep study and application (practice) of any subject in which one wishes to excel. And that desire, the desire for excellence, is as deeply related to seriousness as running is related to motion.
Anyone wishing to move quickly across terrain, say a soccer pitch, needs to learn to move efficiently and in many different ways i.e., laterally, backward, forward, through obstacles, and sprinting with the ball at one’s feet. Just that list implies a set of practice routines each involving sets of sub-routines. That is, there’s no sense in a soccer player running through obstacles if she can’t yet control the ball. Ball control, multiply directed motions, speed drills…you’ve probably got the picture. Excellence in any human activity demands a serious approach to that activity. And that serious approach—itself—leads people to respect those who do life that way. “And life is like that” (Sparshott, 1996, p. 51).
I was completely gobsmacked by that dead simple quoted statement. When we are brought face to face with an unalterable reality, we are dealing with a metaphysical fact or the utterly fundamental nature of reality. There is no changing such things. This is the nature of the world.
You have probably guessed how this applies to the desire to change your life. Like the soccer player above, there is first a self-assessment of your present condition. That’s followed by a projection of how you want to be, the height to which you wish to rise. Next is a measurement of the distance needing to be travelled and a very realistic assessment of how many chunks of understanding and knowledge, or steps, are required to be ascended.
At that stage, breaking the distance down into chunks, it may be wise to seek expertise. That can be gained from someone who has already done what you are seeking to do, or it can be done with the help of an expert in your selected field. Either way, over-estimating your ability, to move through a difficult learning process, can bring early frustration often leading to the abandonment of goals. Don’t be that person—it’s a choice you can make. More small steps and early successes are critical. Use SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic/Relevant, and Timed) goal setting.
Most of the blogs on this website deal with matters concerning addiction and how to leave it behind. In general, this blog is the same. If you wish to defeat addictive behaviours, your attitude toward becoming a person in recovery is all. SMART Recovery, in the introduction to each meeting outlines the broad steps:
If the word “use” (step 2, above) is replaced with “backslide,” this list could (and probably should) be taught from Grade 3 forward. Why? Because life’s like that.
Dan Chalykoff is working toward an M.Ed. in Counselling Psychology and accreditation in Professional Addiction Studies. He writes these blogs to increase (and share) his own evolving understandings of ideas. Since 2017, he has facilitated two voluntary weekly group meetings of SMART Recovery. Please email him (danchalykoff@hotmail.com) to be added to or removed from the Bcc’d emailing list.
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