In March I was preparing to host fifty high school students from a new biotechnology program. We were excited and had organized a series of activities. I was in the office printing copies of handouts when I received the inevitable yet shocking email: we were suspending in person classes and travel. I quickly called several people: we all agreed and canceled the event. I was quiet but really sad. I really enjoy the energy of these activities! Then, on The evening of March 22nd, 2020… when kids went to bed and we began to realize spring break was going to be… different and extended, I downloaded my first audiobook of the year: Carol Dweck’s Mindset . I had wanted to read this and several other books about growth mindset, grit, vulnerability, learning, online teaching, learning science, attention, microbes… Rob Dunn… flow… for a long time! My challenge was on: along with 30 min of Calm.com every morning, I was going to listen to 30 min of an audio book everyday. Two hundred and ninety two days later, I’ve listened to 45 audiobooks. I’m really enjoying it. While 2020 was awful in many ways, I’m glad I started this habit and hope to continue it in 2021. I plan to reflect on each book and write a post to make sure I remember key takeaways.
