Alef: The NEXT Conversation

10Q for 10 days

We’re currently in the midst of the ten days between the Jewish new year of Rosh Hashanah, and Yom Kippur, the day of atonement.  Like many of you, we at Alef know how easy it can be to slip back into default-mode during the High Holiday lull.   Whether it’s work, school, friends, or life in general, it’s really f’ing hard to stay focused on what’s important during these ten days between the two most significant days of the Jewish religious calendar!

Enter Reboot and their latest initiative: 10Q.

Consisting of short, thought-provoking prompts, delivered to your inbox every day, 10Q poses the sort of “big picture” questions befitting this time of year.  And, here’s the brilliant part:  once you’ve answered the daily question emailed to you, all of your answers are saved for a full year, and emailed back to you during the next high holiday season, so you can see just how things have changed since you jotted down your responses; It’s sort of like a spiritual time capsule.  And, what sort of questions does 10Q ask?  Well, believe it or not, for a High Holiday program, there’s actually nothing  specifically “Jewish” about any of the prompts.   Here are just a few of the questions that have already been asked:

• Describe a significant experience that has happened in the past year. How did it affect you?

• Is there something that you wish you had done differently this past year? How would you have done it differently? And how can you learn from it to improve how things turn out in the future?

These are the sort of questions designed to start you thinking about just what makes you who you are, and just what’s happened to you to get you to where you are, today.   Deep stuff, definitely, but what better time than now, between the High Holidays, to be thinking about these big questions?   Even the New York Times has noticed what 10Q is asking.   If the High Holidays are, at their core, a time to reflect on what makes you “you”, then perhaps the best place to start is simply by asking yourself the right questions.

-Alef

To learn more about 10q, visit www.birthrightisrael.com/10q, and to learn more about our friends at reboot, check out www.rebooters.net.

Posted by Rafi, Monday, September 21st, 2009, 6:20 pm, 10Q.