United We Stand, Divided We Fall

 Connection.

That is what Dr. Brown, author of Daring Greatly, says our purpose is in this life. Our lives revolve around the connections we make.

We live in the most connected society that has ever existed on Earth. We have more communication, more travel, more collaboration than we ever have before. We also have more industry, more education, more innovation than we ever have before. I don't think those things are unrelated.

In times of flooding, ants have a beautifully effective way of saving the colony. Worker ants link their legs together creating a floating raft where they rotate positions constantly, trapping air pockets to allow all of the ants the opportunity to survive until they reach dry ground.

Similarly, when people with an idea, a vision, a dream of something better, get together, they build on each other, inspire each other, strengthen each other. They accomplish much more than they could alone. The collaboration of the great historical minds of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries has brought us forward in leaps and bounds to the point where I can hold a small piece of technology in my hand, speak two words: "Hey Siri," and receive an answer to any question I can think of.

That same opportunity for connection and collaboration is available to us as students. Teachers, peers, advisors, textbooks, internships, google, youtube, linkedin, handshake--there is such a wealth of knowledge and wisdom and connection available to us. We can learn literally anything; our potential is limitless. 

If we take the opportunity to make connections with others in our educational studies, if we use the resources we have available, if we help each other through networking and building relationships, we will be much more likely to overcome roadblocks, find solutions, and succeed in our individual, educational, and societal goals.