An Army of Normal Folks - Deep Thoughts on Vacuums

Episode Date: May 10, 2024

For our "Shop Talk" series, Coach Bill pontificates on vacuums and when they can hurt you. Support the show: https://www.normalfolks.us/premiumSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hey everybody, it's Bill Courtney with An Army of Normal Folks and we're about to share with you Shop Talk number 9. I can't believe we're on number 9, but we are. Shop Talk number 9 and we're going to talk about the uselessness of using a vacuum in your life. It's great for getting dirt off carpet, but it's a pretty poor tool for living with. We'll get into that right after these brief messages from our generous sponsors. I'm Hannah Storm and my podcast NBA DNA with Hannah Storm digs deep into the history of professional basketball along with my own as one of the first female sportscasters.

Now let's get you up to speed on what else happened around the NBA today. We talked to all sorts of people I interacted with, from Dr. J to Charles Barkley, and recap iconic moments. Yes, he's got it. Here he comes. Way rock the baby to sleep and slam dunk. As well as some of the wild stories behind the scenes. We were like, what?

What are we in for? The scoreboard crashes before we even tip a game off. Today, the NBA is a global sports and entertainment giant. Players are multimillionaires and cultural icons. Igadala to Curry, back to Igadala, up for the layup! Oh, blocked by James! LeBron James! And these stories are about how we got here, both on and off the court.

And what's next? Listen to NBA DNA with Hannah Storm on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Every family has skeletons in their closet. Mine certainly does. Ones that go back a hundred years and reach thousands of miles back to our hometown in Sicily. Ever since I can

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wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to season nine of Next Question with me, Katie Couric. It is 2024, and we're going to get through this together, folks. My campaign promise to all of you here on Next Question is going to be a good time the whole time, we hope. I have some big news to share with you on our season premiere featuring Kris Jenner, who's got some words of wisdom for me on being a good grandmother, or in her case, a good lovey.

You know, you start thinking of what you want your grandmother name to be, like, are they going to call me grandma like I called my grandmother? So I got to choose my name which is now Lovey. I'll also be joined by Hillary Clinton, Renee Flemming, Liz Cheney to name a few. So come on in and take a break from the incessant negativity for a weekly dose of fascinating conversations. Some of them I promise will actually put you in a good mood. I loved it, your energy and joy. I'm squeezing every minute I can for you out of this season of Next Question. Last question, I promise, you have to go, I have to go.

But it's been so fun. And I can't wait for you to hear it. Listen to Next Question with me, Katie Couric, on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. ["Sweet Home Alone"] or wherever you get your podcasts. All right, everybody shot talk number nine. Those of you who've ever used a vacuum to get dirt off the carpet. Typically they work really well and the way they work is air is sucked in through the

input of the vacuum and that air is strong enough sometimes with a brush to pick up dirt and then when the air goes into a cylinder of some sort whether it's a bag or whatever it spins around real fast and the dirt is heavier than the air so the dirt falls out of that centrifuge of air falls into the bag that collects the dirt and then the air is expelled through the output. So air in spins fast in circles air out. It's how vacuum works. That's what a vacuum is.

That's how vacuum cleaner works. But that's what a vacuum is. In spins real fast, out. The vacuum itself is the spinning. And a vacuum cleaner is a great implement for getting dirt off a carpet, but a vacuum is a terrible thing to live in. What that means y'all is if if you surround yourself with people that look just like you vote just like you love just like you worship just like you live just like you basically have a life just like you every conversation you have is going to be circular you're all gonna agree with each other you're all gonna have the

same perspective you're all gonna have the same. You're all going to agree with each other. You're all going to have the same perspective. You're all going to have the same ideas. You're all going to have the same ideals. You're all going to have the same narrative on life. You're all going to have the same everything. And so you sit at a table with a bunch of people that look just like you, act just like you, vote just like you, believe just like you, worship just like you, love just like you. And like you vote just like you believe just like you worship just like you love just like you and as you have conversations about things going on in the world you're all going to be going in circles around the table just agreeing with each other. That's not growth, that's thought inside a vacuum. Now look, there's nothing wrong with having people in your orbit that are from your world where you can discuss your most intimate thoughts and your fears and your goals. And it may be a

small group at church, it may be a foursome at golf, maybe a group you sit down with at a corner table in some cafe and share a cup of coffee or a of wine and and you need places like that to go to you know recharge your batteries but if that's the only place you go if that's the only place you exist I would say you're not having a whole lot of growth because inside that vacuum, you don't get input into your mind and your ethos, ideas that may be contra to what you think and believe. And I'm not saying that we ever need to give up on our principles or give up on the things that we believe in.

I'm not saying that, but I'm saying to find consensus and to civilly have discourse about the things that divide us, you're never going to fully understand that perspective and to consider another person's point of view unless you're unwilling to get out of your own vacuum of thought. So while a vacuum cleaner is a great thing to get dirt off a carpet, it's a terrible place to live because without those convergence of ideas and principles, without that exploration of things outside of your own belief set, there's no way you're going to grow. I've learned that a number of different places. One of them was Shimonassas, you know, that was a very, very different social setting

than anything I'd ever been exposed to. And I had a lot of preconceived notions about kids from New Chicago and the hood. I had a lot of preconceived notions about society, the politics of that society, and why people often ended up in poverty and how they existed in poverty. So when I went to Manassas, I got way outside of my vacuum, my thought was outside of my vacuum. And I listened, and I learned. And I got to see a point of view and a perspective that I had never ever considered in my life, because I'd never ever heard it. And once I considered and listened to a different narrative and a different perspective on life, and a part of society part of my society that I'd never immersed myself in,

I started to grow. And I started to change my opinions on some things. Now did the basics and fundamental tenets of who I am and what I believe in my faith and in my family and all of those things change? No, not really. But they certainly evolved and they evolved because I was outside of my vacuum. I was outside of my comfort zone. I was outside of a place that I'd always kind of existed. And through that I grew. I became a better

football coach. I became a better manager and my business and I became a better person. And I have a perspective now, an understanding of a perspective now, that allows me to have conversations that are useful and relatable and real that I would have never been able to have had I not had that experience of being outside of my vacuum in a place that was foreign and different to where I came from and so I grew. So shop talk number nine think about a vacuum we we often talk on an army of Normal folks about how change can happen in this country, but it starts with you. And I do believe that. It starts with every one of you. Seeing a small area of need in your corner of the world and feeling it.

But I will tell you, the most effective way to do that is to break free of your vacuum of thought, open your eyes, open your mind, open your heart, open your ears, and hear other points of view, other narratives and other perspectives. And if you hear those and understand those and learn from those, When you do step out of your comfort zone and you do seek to do something for your society and your own neck of the woods, you will be much more prepared to handle the challenges that come as a result of doing that work. And I promise you this, you will get 500 times more out of it than you put into it and you will grow and you will learn. That's Shop Talk this week.

I hope you'll think about it. I'm Bill Courtney. We'll see you next week. I'm Hannah Storm and my new podcast, DNA with Hannah Storm chronicles my six decades in professional basketball from growing up in the sport to becoming one of sports TV's first female broadcasters. Join me as I dig deep into the game's history, unearth some wild stories and talk to my friends from the world of basketball, from Dr. J to Charles Barkley. I'm Solea Mohsin, and I've covered economic policy for years and reported on how it impacts

people across the United States. In 2016, I saw how voters were leaning towards Trump and how so many Americans felt misunderstood by Washington. So I started The Big Take DC. We dig into how money, politics, and power shape government and the consequences for voters. With new episodes every Thursday, you can listen to The Big Take DC on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or whatever you get your

podcasts. The Big Take from Bloomberg News brings you what's shaping the world's economies with the smartest and best informed business reporters around the world. We cover the stories behind what's moving money in markets and help you understand what's happening, what it means, and why it matters every afternoon. I'm Sarah Holder. I'm Saleh Emosen. And I'm David Gura.

Listen to the big take on the iHeart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.