Man of Science, Man of Faith.
Jun. 15th, 2009 06:28 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
per_soloA lot of the time in my life, I trust my instincts. Others I know, several of whom are good friends, trust facts, and all the pieces of information they can accumulate. This can be in regards to job hunting, what is best, or even information coming in from our government.
We are led, a lot of times, to believe that anything that is different than what "we" believe is wrong.
Which tends to be a crock o' shit.
My way of viewing the world works for me. There are others it works for, but not all.
I've learned to trust my instincts, in many cases. In fact, in the past, some of the worst mistakes I've made have been when I've not trusted my instincts.
For others, instincts are unfathomable, or impractical, at least for their lives. They take in all information, all facts, and then use that to guide their decisions.
I like to think that works, too. I know that in my case, my instincts tend to be an amalgamation of ALL the data I've accumulated before, and that it helps me analyze my instincts, sometimes much quicker than I would give credit to. My "gut feeling" as it were.
One of the things I've grown to love is my ability to perceive how people will react to things. Add in that my brain tends to plot out all the given variables that can happen, and you've got a brain that can feel...crazy, at times.
My father used to say "Probability and Outcome", what are the varied probabilities that a course of action will engender, and what are the outcomes...and are you willing to deal with a potential outcome.
Yeah, it is fairly accurate..it doesn't always work in practice, as we rarely think out to the Nth degree the possible ramifications of any course of action.
The title of this post was partially inspired by the show Lost. There are almost always 2 sides in this battle...the Man of Science, who believes in rationality..and the Man of Faith, who believes in something bigger, something less well defined.
In this case, I almost always fall onto the side of the Man of Faith. Not faith in a deity (unless you count Loki, who I think is the one pulling the strings...it makes a lot more sense that a chaotic entity is doing all this, as opposed to a benevolent deity), but faith in my interpretations of people...of how they will react to things, and faith in my own experiences, both the good and the bad.
But I must always, always remember...there are different viewpoints, different takes on situations...different realities, if you will...and that others have a right to think the way they will. The point where I draw the line is when those other realities are harmful to others. Everyone's reality can be harmful to themself. Even mine. But when my reality is causing harm to others? That's where it needs to be examined.
We are led, a lot of times, to believe that anything that is different than what "we" believe is wrong.
Which tends to be a crock o' shit.
My way of viewing the world works for me. There are others it works for, but not all.
I've learned to trust my instincts, in many cases. In fact, in the past, some of the worst mistakes I've made have been when I've not trusted my instincts.
For others, instincts are unfathomable, or impractical, at least for their lives. They take in all information, all facts, and then use that to guide their decisions.
I like to think that works, too. I know that in my case, my instincts tend to be an amalgamation of ALL the data I've accumulated before, and that it helps me analyze my instincts, sometimes much quicker than I would give credit to. My "gut feeling" as it were.
One of the things I've grown to love is my ability to perceive how people will react to things. Add in that my brain tends to plot out all the given variables that can happen, and you've got a brain that can feel...crazy, at times.
My father used to say "Probability and Outcome", what are the varied probabilities that a course of action will engender, and what are the outcomes...and are you willing to deal with a potential outcome.
Yeah, it is fairly accurate..it doesn't always work in practice, as we rarely think out to the Nth degree the possible ramifications of any course of action.
The title of this post was partially inspired by the show Lost. There are almost always 2 sides in this battle...the Man of Science, who believes in rationality..and the Man of Faith, who believes in something bigger, something less well defined.
In this case, I almost always fall onto the side of the Man of Faith. Not faith in a deity (unless you count Loki, who I think is the one pulling the strings...it makes a lot more sense that a chaotic entity is doing all this, as opposed to a benevolent deity), but faith in my interpretations of people...of how they will react to things, and faith in my own experiences, both the good and the bad.
But I must always, always remember...there are different viewpoints, different takes on situations...different realities, if you will...and that others have a right to think the way they will. The point where I draw the line is when those other realities are harmful to others. Everyone's reality can be harmful to themself. Even mine. But when my reality is causing harm to others? That's where it needs to be examined.
