Just as living organisms we must evolve to survive, our cognitive schemas must also grow and adapt, or they become rigid and ineffective.

If a person clings to outdated schemas, they risk misunderstanding new information, struggling in relationships, or feeling stuck in old patterns that no longer serve them. Growth, in this sense, means integrating new experiences, challenging assumptions, and being open to change. Those who resist adaptation may find themselves disconnected from evolving social, cultural, or personal realities—essentially, their ability to navigate life dies in a figurative sense.

This principle applies to everything from personal beliefs and emotional regulation to professional skills and societal norms. A healthy mind, like a thriving organism, remains dynamic, learning from new experiences rather than being trapped in past perceptions.

I was recently reading a book called “The Eight Dates” by John Gottman and he references this concept frequently. Though in their terms it’s further elaborated that the friction can only be resolved through curious it’s, respect and a focus on shared meaning. Conflict is inevitable but there are always going more ways to share a common ground. We as people love being right but in the end, love our interpersonal relationships more.

Emotional packed conversations with individuals who suffer from PTSD often lead to conflict due to the misfire of perception. Heightened sensitivity to stimuli can trigger a fight flight or freeze response that leads to them being overly defensive, withdrawn or completely dissociated. Hyper-vigilance may cause their tone to then be misinterpreted and the guilt and shame can make open communication challenging. These misunderstandings come from a survival mechanism the brain has created to protect though the dysfunction becomes a barrier to effective communication.

Growing up in the turn of the millennia I distinctly remember the dial-u tone of the AOL “ You’ve Got Mail.” Though, I jokingly use the phrase when friends haven’t responded to a message and then I see them in person. The reference is definitely not received when pointed at a different audience. Without the sound, speaking from experience, the more common response is now “where’s my piece of paper?” The context that we learn and associate phrases and the relevance in which they’re said is where the importance to every statement lies.

From a parenting perspective, there’s an interesting correlation to a common contradiction. It’s well known that we teach kids to not “take candy from a stranger.” Though, one night a year we prepare amply to walk along with them to strangers’ doorstep and encourage them to. Not by saying “please may I have some candy?” ( Please* being another phrase we adamantly teach to our young when asking for something we want.) Instead we urge “trick or treat” in this scenario, awaiting the strangers’ response to ideally play along with our once-a-year, rule-bending ritual. Optimistically teaching them that not all people need to remain strangers and that we as a community can build trust. How hard it must be for children to conceive and play along with these exceptions.

In the lecture video on communication by Professor Bennet she explained that interpersonal communication is the most common yet least studied. Though, I would argue that in the ways our mental health field has progressed over the pat century, our understanding of inner dialogue is as well. Providers are listening to the roots of what is causing the illness and then strategizing solutions. There seems to be a direct correlation between how someone views themselves and how they view the world around them. Some mental health providers employ a tactic to improved patients struggling with depression by requiring them to reflect on five positive things they did that day. Just the intended time in finding moments of value increases their view of their life. therefore studying their own dialogue, changing the view, then is providing a stronger basis for interpersonal and intrapersonal relationships.

In my experience, taking a course can vary drastically from one professor to the next. In the movie The Dead Poet’s Society, the teacher addresses the class while standing on top of a desk which is very out of the ordinary for the boy school he’s teaching at. Throughout the movie he is encouraging them to think for themselves. The students then eventually are shaped by his ideas and learn more than the text he was assigned to teach. In this way he was able to provide his students a route of learning, curiosity and confidence to communicate through out life. It provokes that what you say and how you say it are equally valuable.

Looking back over time, humans have had these beautiful waves in sharing information. During the Age of Enlightenment, Shakespeare gave us some of the most compelling pieces of literary work. The Bard lives on today as seen by the modern retelling of some of his most famous plays. For instance, 10 things I Hate About You is a retelling of The Taming of the Shrew. The main character Kat is directly coordinated with the “Shrew.” Several different characters give homage to Shakespeare in phrase and in how they dress. Though it can be hard to tell without knowing the reference, the themes created by Shakespeare have been modified to address the audience of our modern society.

In recent local news we have had a controversy about a teacher in the West Ada School District. She had posted a sign in her classroom that said “All Are Welcome Here” each word in a different color. She explained in a news article released by KTVB that posting these signs in the classroom was a way of promoting inclusivity. The Principal of the school directed the signs to be removed and though she originally did, she placed them back up as a way to stand by her values. The school district would not make a formal public address about the subject but did note in summary that their overall goal was to foster kindness while eliminating distractions. This conflict seems to have affected multiple layers of our community through how they interpret the sign and the way this disagreement was managed. Many posters and signs are posted around every school I have ever been in, some being a gender segregation signifying which bathroom you are publicly allowed in. It is ambiguous to determine what is a “distraction” versus what is encouraging an inclusive environment. What kind of academic challenges arise when someone does not feel included in a classroom? To my knowledge, the teacher and principal still work alongside each other. This type of public light on their conflict seems like it would lead to a very tense work environment.