Today, for our Sunday musing, am sharing a brief daily blog from Seth Godin, and one that is resonant to two themes I often write around.
Also, with that inspiration, first sharing several prior posts of mine, some with music, some film, some are simply words, thoughts, ideas. I encourage you to take some time in a quiet place with a favourite tea or coffee and enjoy 🙂
The first of the two themes is “sentio ergo sum”, I feel therefore I am. We make our decisions, at the moment of making the decision (not in assessing the options), based on feelings and energy, not rationality. See:
- Cogito Ergo Sum, or Sentio Ergo Sum?
- Nothing happens until somebody feels something
- Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge?
The second theme is that “We are the sum total of our experiences”:
- My post on the topic here, including a beautiful quote from BJ Neblett: “We are the sum total of our experiences. Those experiences – be they positive or negative – make us the person we are, at any given point in our lives. And, like a flowing river, those same experiences, and those yet to come, continue to influence and reshape the person we are, and the person we become. None of us are the same as we were yesterday, nor will be tomorrow.” Do read the blog post, as it also has a video of a sublime piece of music anchored on Maori ancestor culture.
- No one ever made a decision based on a number
- Business is simple, people are complex
- Finally, one more quote: “You are the sum total of everything you’ve ever seen, heard, eaten, smelled, been told, forgot – it’s all there. Everything influences each of us, and because of that I try to make sure that my experiences are positive.” ~ Maya Angelou
Now, to Seth’s concise post this week:
Everyone is rational
But if that’s true, then why don’t we all agree on the right next step?
It could be because everyone has a different experience, different data and different goals.
Or, it could be that you are the only one who’s rational.
And it could be that we all like to tell ourselves we’re doing the right thing, but ultimately, all we can do is make choices based on how we see the world.
The way we see things drives our choices, and, of course, our choices change the way we see things.
Seth Godin