No surprises
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“The ego is the false self, born out of fear and defensiveness.” —John O’Donnohue
It takes no effort to have a jaded view of the world today. And yet students of history—especially the classical period—remind us this has been the case as far back as people have been writing things down. Much of Seneca’s writing, for instance, is a prescription against pessimism for a world of problems 2,000 years ago that has fewer differences than similarities to ours today.
We don’t see the world as it really is. That’s what Hans Rosling argues in his final book, Factfullness (https://www.amazon.ca/Factfulness-Reasons-World-Things-Better/dp/1250107814) . He argues that we instead are prone to 10 tendencies (I’ve paraphrased each point below).
Gap: Our understanding of differences is distorted by our judgement those differences. Negativity: We are more prone to allow bad news shape our perception of things. Straight line: We assume what happens—good or bad—will continue to happen. Fear: Frightening things and uncertainty occupy our attention far more than those that give us knowledge and comfort. Size: Without seeing things in relative proportion to other things, we distort the meaning of events and numbers. Generalization: What we observe once is a poor predictor of future behaviour. Destiny: Despite our beliefs, nothing is inevitable. Single perspective: Our understanding of most things comes from cognitive biases in which we use facts to match our feelings rather than the other way around. Blame: We are each prone to see ourselves as the hero in our own story, and someone else is the villain. Urgency: When faced with a decision, we assume it requires a single big step.
Each of these instincts shares a common characteristic. They are stories.
We like to pretend that stories give us the tools to understand the world. In some ways, they do. The trouble with that way of thinking is that good stories rely on having an element of surprise to them. The trouble with surprises is that they tend to keep us stuck in a state of disbelief, clinging to our ego, our assumptions and our biases. Don’t be so quick to believe what you think (https://us4.campaign-archive.com/?u=89226eb68936fc712577977b8&id=28a95e5c5d) .
You are not the story that holds you rooted to the ground. More than that, you are the story that branches out toward the sky. Only you can let that happen, if you are willing to let go.
Very best, Patrick
P.S. Thank you to so many of you who regularly take time to send me a quick reply to this newsletter. It helps me a lot to know what sticks with you and why.
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