It may be possible to have it both ways, to know rationality without having it interfere with achieving happiness and other goals.
For me, rationality is a topic of interest, but I don’t make a religion out of it. I cultivate a sort of Zen attitude towards raaitonalit, trying not to grasp it too tightly. I am curious to know what the rational truth is, but I’m willing and, with the right frame of mind, able to ignore it.
I can be aware at some level that my emotional feelings are technically irrational and reflect untrue beliefs, but so what. They’re true enough. They’re as true as everyone else’s. That’s good enough for me. I can still embrace them wholeheartedly.
Now how about overconfidence. The truth is that I am either lucky or unlucky on this issue, depending on how you look at it. I am not very overconfident. Modesty comes naturally to me. Asserting my opinions makes me uncomfortable. When someone else says I’m wrong, I take it very much to heart. This is just my personality. When I was younger I was more assertive, but as I’ve gotten older I find that my uncertainties have grown. Probably learning the rational truth on these matters has contributed to the change, but it is one which has come naturally to me.
Most people are different, but they can still know that their overconfidence is irrational and mistaken, without particularly acting any less confident. After all, they know that the other guy’s confidence is just as inflated, so they are equally as justified in flaunting their excellence as anyone else.
Can one really use rationality like this? Listen to Lewis Carroll: “The question is, which is to be the master—that’s all.”
It may be possible to have it both ways, to know rationality without having it interfere with achieving happiness and other goals.
For me, rationality is a topic of interest, but I don’t make a religion out of it. I cultivate a sort of Zen attitude towards raaitonalit, trying not to grasp it too tightly. I am curious to know what the rational truth is, but I’m willing and, with the right frame of mind, able to ignore it.
I can be aware at some level that my emotional feelings are technically irrational and reflect untrue beliefs, but so what. They’re true enough. They’re as true as everyone else’s. That’s good enough for me. I can still embrace them wholeheartedly.
Now how about overconfidence. The truth is that I am either lucky or unlucky on this issue, depending on how you look at it. I am not very overconfident. Modesty comes naturally to me. Asserting my opinions makes me uncomfortable. When someone else says I’m wrong, I take it very much to heart. This is just my personality. When I was younger I was more assertive, but as I’ve gotten older I find that my uncertainties have grown. Probably learning the rational truth on these matters has contributed to the change, but it is one which has come naturally to me.
Most people are different, but they can still know that their overconfidence is irrational and mistaken, without particularly acting any less confident. After all, they know that the other guy’s confidence is just as inflated, so they are equally as justified in flaunting their excellence as anyone else.
Can one really use rationality like this? Listen to Lewis Carroll: “The question is, which is to be the master—that’s all.”