I know that I am making this decision from the heart. I know it is the wrong thing to do.
No, said Mma Potokwane. It is never the wrong thing to do. Never.
This exchange made me think immediately how I always make decisions from my head. I often write out a Pro and Con list when making a big decisions, and I became enamored with the Decisional Balancing Scale that I learned from a therapeutic workshop. My heart tends to be sadly pushed aside as reason and intellect and rationality seem a better basis for action.
Recently I have been working with Dialectical Behavior Therapy which promotes a Wise Mind approach. Combining the Reasonable Mind and the Emotional Mind will result in a good decision or reaction to situations. This therapy was designed for people whose tendency is towards emotional decisions and reactions. The opposite of me. But when they talk about how your emotions can be a valuable asset to listen to, I have to agree.
I can think of a few times I have consciously let emotion guide decisions. Those that come to mind are when I have decided to break rules or ethical standards because I "feel" it is the right thing to do. For example, I have loaned money knowing I would probably not get it back, or done something that may be perceived as enabling because the person was down, or old or whatever.
I can think of a few times I have consciously let emotion guide decisions. Those that come to mind are when I have decided to break rules or ethical standards because I "feel" it is the right thing to do. For example, I have loaned money knowing I would probably not get it back, or done something that may be perceived as enabling because the person was down, or old or whatever.
2 comments:
It's interesting how different people do their decision-making. If you don't understand another person's process, then you might question their rationale or want them to do it "your" way. Balance in all things always seems something to strive for...but becoming aware you are unbalanced in a particular regard is the first step in achieving. Too many people never even question their methods, processes, routines, decisions, etc.
I like what the first commenter said. In the same way "moderation in everything" seems to be a good way to operate, it makes sense that being balanced in heart and mind is a good thing to achieve, whenever possible.
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