Overcoming the Challenge of Learning Echolocation

As an engineer, I have been taking an approach to echolocation that I hope is informative.  I can only publish on this blog what I have learned for myself, first hand and then dispelled to you through somewhat scientific means of analysis.  That said, please let me know if you enjoy the way these articles are written.  My hope is that all of the readers can relate to my experiences or begin to have similar experiences of their own.

As a sighted person, I am at the unfortunate disadvantage of having a reduced capacity to utilize my visual cortex as a processing station, but far worse, I am not forced to diligently practice echolocation every single day as a blind person is.  Anyone looking to learn anything will always have challenges.  The process of learning requires an expenditure of energy that you will never get back.  However, you will get something far more valuable for your time and effort after taking on that challenge.  Often times far more than you sought to learn in the first place.

As a martial artist and entrepreneur, I thrive on challenges and I love understanding and exceeding my own limitations.  I think a lot of people have a hesitation to learning echolocation either because:

1.  They do not understand it

To which I say...  There is so much to life that we don't understand. Even the most advanced scientists in the world can not explain exactly how the brain works. It's up to each one of us as individuals to explore and discover our own capabilities and limitations.   Once we have discovered our limitations, only then will we be able to break free of them using creative thinking and diligent training.


or

2.  They simply think of it as an insurmountable challenge for them

Nothing is insurmountable.  If one person on this planet can do something, that means you can too.  How to get there is the tricky part, but it's also the fun part.

Use information provided by science.  It's sometimes misguided, and sometimes misused, but in essence - and in definition, science speaks the truth and is an incredible learning tool.  But science alone will not be a solution for all problems, there are things that it simply does not encompass, or has yet to explain.  To learn an internal skill like echolocation, you will also need to use introspection.

INTROSPECTION (or internal perception) is the self-examination of one's conscious thoughts and feelings. In psychology, the process of introspection relies exclusively on the purposeful and rational self-observation of one's mental state; however, introspection is sometimes referenced in a spiritual context as the examination of one's soul. Introspection is closely related to the philosophical concept of human self-reflection, and is contrasted with external observation.  --  Wikipedia

This means looking into yourself and finding answers, solutions and techniques that work for you.  It is taking what you know and piecing the puzzle together.  It is creating something from nothing.  Anyone can do it, and everyone should do it.  In martial arts we use introspection to understand how to move our bodies into certain positions and to learn what we need to do to strengthen our bodies for certain situations.

Life as a whole is a challenge.  It is an expenditure of energy to reach a goal.  Embrace the challenge and make it your own.  Perhaps most importantly, enjoy the process.