Sunday, January 30, 2011

Gut Feelings

Alright. I should have posted this yesterday, but...I'm a slacker.

Okay, gut feelings. We all have these. They tell us what we think of situations, and give us a reaction for every situation.

But not always the correct one. Gut feelings are vestigial traits from more primal days. These days, there's not much we need to react to instantly. A car rushing towards us, or a bar fight, sure. But politicians, social issues, and arguments don't require instant action. All of these provide time for ample thought.

Gut feelings make us move away from thought. We hear a cry to action, and react. We see a person who we dislike, and act on this, with no real proof, just a feeling. We see text on the internet, and instantly make assumptions based on these gut feelings. In other words, gut feelings push us to make uninformed decisions. And all too often, uninformed decisions are the things which cause confrontations or strife to escalate.

I'm not making an argument about abolishing gut feelings, however. The subconscious can tell us more about many situations than we can consciously discern for many things. But it should not rule our decisions and opinions. You may think at first that your new boss is really sleazy for no reason at all, and spend the next week making snide comments behind his back...until you get to know him. You may do exactly what that radio talk show host tells you...until you realize that you're being fed a bunch of bullshit. Your gut feelings may still tug at you in these situations, telling you, "They're hiding something", or "You're overlooking something."

But life is not a movie. Your new boss is not an undercover spy whose mission is to ruin your life. That talk show host doesn't have some hidden insight, or some kernel of knowledge he's hiding from you, except maybe that by following him blindly, you're a sheeple.

So in other words, gut feelings are something you can use to shape a line of action for something, but make sure it is not your only reasoning for that action, and don't let it rule your other reasons. Take the time to think things through, from all sides of a situation. If you find your gut feelings are wrong, ditch them.

And there ends my rambling spiel. Good day.

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