Within the film Paycheck, Ben Affleck finds himself below assault from Uma Thurman’s futuristic climate machine. Buffeted by gale-force winds, Affleck raises his palms and calls out, “Alright, I surrender! I surrender!”
Thurman turns off the climate, smiles mischievously, and coos, “Don’t surrender.”
There may be a couple of manner to surrender. Within the sense of give up, it means to confess defeat, as in battle or debate. Within the sense of relinquish, it means at hand over, as in cost, property, or energy.
One more synonym for surrender is to capitulate, typically used to imply conditional give up. It’s that implied sense of conditionality that makes the phrase worthy of contemplation, notably about one frequent variant . . . which occurs to be this week’s entry into the Moral Lexicon:
Recapitulate (re·ca·pit·u·late/ ree-kuh-pich-uh-leyt) verb
To assessment, repeat, or summarize; to offer a brand new type or expression to
To repeat the principal levels or phases of a course of
The foundation phrase capitulate derives from the Latin capitulum, that means head of a discourse or chapter. In the identical manner {that a} capital letter signifies the start of a brand new sentence, a brand new chapter marks a brand new part within the story. And earlier than closing out one chapter, it’s prudent to revisit and consolidate the central thought or level of the earlier chapter.
However how does that specify the connection to giving up? With a small shift of focus, we will uncover a compelling new perception.
I steadily cite my school English professor Max Byrd, who remarked: “I’ve by no means understood why individuals complain about being disillusioned. I might be pleased about the chance to be relieved of my illusions.” And the simplest solution to dispel phantasm is with a wholesome dose of actuality.
We sometimes perceive the aim of summarization as offering a greater grasp of the fabric beforehand discovered and at present being reviewed. That’s true. But it surely’s not the one profit.
Assessment is an in depth cousin of rethink. If our concepts are sound, a assessment permits us to know them extra totally and internalize them extra deeply. But when our notions are nonetheless half-baked or in any other case flawed, recapitulation may also help us acknowledge their imperfections, ideally to right them or, if crucial, to desert them.
Herein we discover the connection to giving up. We don’t need to stay invested in flawed concepts any greater than we need to throw good cash after unhealthy in ill-advised enterprise ventures. The willingness to revisit concepts, seek for inconsistencies, and make the mandatory changes is crucial to sound judgment, clever coverage, and moral decision-making.
Most of us can nonetheless bear in mind the early days of GPS when, upon deviating from the instructions dictated by our units, we’d hear the phrase, “recalculating.” It wasn’t a rejection of the method that had introduced us to our present location. It was a reconsideration of the way in which ahead based mostly on new data, the capitulation of slavish loyalty to the previous to discover a surer path into the longer term.
Enterprise folklore is stuffed with examples of giants who vanished from the Earth as a result of they have been unwilling to capitulate. Eastman Kodak pioneered digital images however couldn’t relinquish its devotion to celluloid movie. Blockbuster contemplated the shift to streaming however determined it couldn’t surrender late charges on tardy DVDs and videocassettes. And possibly there’s nonetheless somebody on the market who favors a PalmPilot over a smartphone touchscreen . . . however extinction is as inevitable as dusk.
Recapitulation gives the method for decision-makers to higher perceive their very own concepts, methods, and insurance policies. By reviewing with an open thoughts, we will reaffirm what we have now already concluded whereas concurrently tweaking, bettering, revising, and sometimes rejecting outdated views. It’s not onerous if we’re prepared to ask questions like these:
- Are the methods, processes, and instruments that obtained us right here going to maneuver us ahead?
- Has the taking part in area modified in order that we have to change our sport plan?
- How can we construct upon previous success in order that we don’t grow to be victims of complacency?
- What classes can we take from taking a improper flip that can steer us again heading in the right direction?
- Are we extra invested in a single particular plan of action than we’re in our long-term prosperity?
In any case, we be taught as a lot from failure as we do from success. Typically extra. As Uma Thurman says to Ben Affleck: “It’s all we’re: the sum of our experiences. Moreover, a few of the greatest issues in life are whole errors.”