Sunday 22 October 2017

#289 Considering a response for dummies

Luisa seemed fine. She said she was fine. Luisa always said she was fine. It'd been a while since I'd seen her last. I'd mainly been focusing on the career coaching exercises, which we discussed. She asked the same damn question as everyone else. Was the coaching helpful? I gave the same damn answer. It was too early to tell.

I spent a while talking about how I'd dissected some feedback I'd received about a week ago. She was always interested in stuff like that. I'd been told I needed to stop pretending I didn't have emotions. A fair enough comment, if interpreted in a holistic sort of way. I'd scribbled down the sixteen thoughts that had occurred to me upon receiving it. Seven negative, seven positive. Two neutral. I'd written them out in the order in which I'd had them and then categorised them. Sorta like a mind map but without the map.

I started thinking about how a person might start to become more acquainted with their emotions. Disciplined conscious observation and reflection seemed like the most obvious method. I'd been doing that anyway and getting better at it. Slowly.

When I got back home, I checked on a philosophy thread I'd been commenting on, entitled "Why do you live?" It had turned into a slagging match between two self-proclaimed nihilists, who seemed to be arguing over whether life had any meaning, primarily because they hadn't agreed upon whether they were talking about it at a personal level or a universal level. The moderator had stepped in.

Moderation is particularly important in a philosophy forum. It's important in any forum but philosophers tend to be better than average at organising their thoughts. This means it's more apparent if somebody "cheats" by using an invalid argument or by using a valid argument invalidly.

Get the message. Notice the emotion. Rein it in. Consider the response. Proceed.

If only they taught that effectively in schools.

7 comments

Fizzfan said...

I’ve thought the same thing about teaching basic life skills like thought manangement, money management and communication skills in schools since I left a life time ago.
It would have come in a damn site handier than the hours spent on a whole host of other subjects that’s for sure.

Yes moderation is important, but I’m not sure it’s entirely honest and can lead to suppression of important feelings that can grow into resentment and then can suddenly flare up and you get a surprise result like Brexit or a punch on the nose :)

Profound Familiarity said...

Yes, everything in moderation... and that includes moderation.

Fizzfan said...

I agree and also that he was a genius.

Profound Familiarity said...

Who was a genius?

Fizzfan said...

Oscar Wilde.......he said what you said............
If you weren’t quoting.....great minds think alike.

Profound Familiarity said...

Ah ok, I'd probably heard it said before when someone was quoting him or something.

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