The April showers of 2024 truly brought us a beautiful display of flowers!
As the weather begins to warm, many of us have started digging and planting in our gardens. To improve the soil health, we may add some humus to the soil. Humus is a necessary ingredient to help ensure that our plants will be healthy, productive, and thrive. The word “humus” was first used to mean “earth/soil”.
Later, the related word “humility” was used to mean “lowly, humble,” literally “on the ground” from humus “earth.”
Recently I’ve been reading about the topic of intellectual humility. Just like humus helps our gardens grow, intellectual humility is a necessary ingredient if you want to keep thriving and growing across all areas of our life, whether it’s at work, in the home, or in the community.
In the Greater Good Science Center article, What Does Intellectual Humility Look Like, author Mark Leary, Ph.D., a professor emeritus of Psychology and Neuroscience at Duke University, identifies some traits that people who are intellectually humble may have. They include:
- A willingness to question our own opinions, positions, and viewpoints because they could be based on faulty or incomplete information.
- A willingness to reconsider our opinions when presented with new evidence.
- The ability to recognize the value of opinions that are different from our own whether we agree with them or not.
- In the face of conflicting evidence, an openness to changing our opinions.
- The curiosity to search for information that differs from what you already think is true.
It’s not easy to become intellectually humble. In fact, our ability and willingness to do so can vary. But the payoffs for trying to become more intellectually humble are positive and show a sense of strength. Some payoffs include:
- Improving the quality of our decisions.
- Fostering more positive interactions and relationships.
- Promoting progress in organizations and society, because people higher in intellectual humility are more inclined to consider a broader swath of ideas, negotiate, and compromise.
- Higher likeability.
How can we improve our intellectual humility? Libraries historically have been a reliable resource to expand our knowledge and insights. They are a great place to meet others with differing life experiences and opinions.
Andover Public Library’s Summer Reading Program is the perfect opportunity to mix with a wide variety of people. To expand our interests, we can read something different than we normally would. Most importantly, it’s a time to enjoy learning and reading just for the fun of it!
We appreciate your support of the Andover Public Library and look forward to seeing you for this year’s Summer Reading program. In the meantime, may you have plenty of humus so your garden, imagination, and relationships can thrive and prosper.
Sincerely,
Nancy Logan, Director