Decisions

"There is an important point here: All our decisions are made in ignorance. If we knew what to do, we would just do it. That is, we would not be faced with a decision in the first place. The problem is not knowing; rather, the problem is thinking we should know. Understanding how we approach decisions -- and how to make them a vital part of our mindful creativity -- is an important part of our personal renaissance. Any new endeavor is rife with decisions we'll have to face without much experience or knowledge. With respect to painting, how can we know what colors we need, in what amounts, and what kind of brushes we'll want unless we know just what we are going to paint and and how we are going to paint it? But if our plan is that exact, the painting is not likely to be created mindfully, nor is it likely to be much fun in the doing.

When faced with a decision, we tend to consider what we think are our options and then predict the consequences we think are likely to result from each. It is in this process that we seem to feel most acutely the difficulty of trying to predict. All of us some of the time, and some of us all of the time, become stressed when facing a decision. The more important we believe the outcome will be for us, the harder the decision is to make." -from On Becoming an Artist: Reinventing Yourself Through Mindful Creativity by Ellen J. Langer (pp. 213-214)

This book was due today, so I spent a little time finishing it before I returned it. I am really intrigued by her opening sentences, "All decisions are made in ignorance. If we knew what to do, we would just do it." It feels like one of those important ideas that make total sense but is presented in a way that I had never considered. Later on in the chapter she goes on to discuss the difference between guessing and deciding, making the point that we are really doing the same type of mental work, but using the two different terms to distinguish how important we view the question at hand. Once again, it is an interesting idea to ponder.

Since Ellen Langer is a professor of psychology at Harvard, what I really wish she had added into this section was how our emotions help drive the decision making process. Those people who have had brain injuries which causes them to not feel emotions anymore cannot actually make decisions. I find this fascinating... that often we feel we are making logical decisions based on facts and logic while in reality we are still going with our gut. It is evidently all we really have if decisions are ultimately made in ignorance.

I don't know about you, but I find this whole idea to be rather freeing. Sometimes we take ourselves so darn seriously. Worrying about making the "right" choices, not being foolish or extravagant, and yes, doing quite a bit of judging of the choices of other people. Now, obviously, there are some choices that would be unwise: Mixing bleach and ammonia to create poison gas, holding up a bank, leaving the two year old unattended... that type of thing. But are those really decisions based on Dr. Langer's definition? No, because we know what the outcome will be so we (or most of us) do not do those things. The rest? Well, our crystal balls don't work. Admitting that we don't know the future does limit how much we can actually make informed decisions. Or maybe using a different term would be equally freeing and calling them informed guesses. 

Ultimately life is a bit of a roller coaster. You can cringe in terror or you can find things on the ride which are enjoyable even if you aren't really sure when that next big plunge is going to happen.

I do recommend this book even if you do not see yourself as someone who would like to be an artist. Yes, she discusses art a bit, but really it is about how to mindfully be fully present in your life. Highly recommended.