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To what extent do you let reason or logic make your decisions for you? To what extent do you allow your emotions to steer them?

And please don't reference "common sense". It does not exist.

Seeker3CO 8 Jan 4
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40 comments (26 - 40)

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2

It depends on the situation I am making the decision. I have no exact figures, but there's a lot of reason, logic and also emotions depending on the circumstances...

2

We are bags of chemicals. Emotions are the only result.

2

I try to keep things balanced. I know that just because I might find something to be nice, unpleasant or unpalatable, that doesn't make it any less true or right.

2

According to Sam Harris, our brain plays a video of what our senses detect. Our brain determines all our behavior (along with emotions caused by chemical changes in the brain). This, I think, is called materialism or determinism. Our consciousness is an illusion. We think we are making decisions, but in fact, our brain is making them for us. I don't think a person can "choose to believe", our brain does that for us. Furthermore, quantum physics suggests that the actions of atomic particles in the neurons of the brain have randomness.

"We are not the conscious authors of our own thoughts." -Sam Harris

@Shawno1972 Thank you.

@Seeker3CO My interpretation of his comment is that he believes like a lot of scientists are starting to believe - that our consciousness is not having as much of a say in how we act as we may have thought. Maybe no say at all. Various experiments seem to indicate that we make decisions sometime before we're consciously aware of them, which in turn indicates we're not consciously making those decisions.The data is not perfect yet but this is the way it seems to be going, and many leading neuroscientists such as Sam Harris offer a pretty compelling case for it. No free will, therefore.

You probably already know all this. I'm just offering what I think he's thinking...don't blame me, I'm not the author of my thoughts. 😀

@Shawno1972 Yes I've just been reading/ listening to Harris' thoughts on this. The more I practice mindfulness (eg deliberately concentrating on my breathing say) the more I realise how little control I have of the random thoughts that pop into my mind. It has been liberating and mind blowing to step back, and look objectively at my thoughts and feelings as they come and go. I think it might be really smug of us to assume that we are like mini gods with spirits souls or ego.

Do you practice mindfulness Grecio?

@MsDemeanour I do to a degree but I haven't trained myself very well. I don't understand the concept very well. I don't meditate. I do think I am getting slowly better at practicing., very slowly. Got any suggestions?

1

I would have to say emotion, but not really emotional. I trust my initial reaction to be my best decision. Mainly because my thought processes tend be be very logical and almost emotionless. I always approach every as a cost-benefit situation and ask myself, "Is it (the action) worth the consequences (the reaction)?"

I don't hesitate. My advice is usually do everything with conviction. It's better to do something wrong that you believe in than to do nothing because you're afraid to be wrong.

1

I use reason for money issues and emotions for heart issues. But I should use reason for it all because I have really bad judgment with love and relationships. 😂🤣

Jennw Level 4 Jan 5, 2020
1

Unfortunately, our brains do not process true reason and common sense ability all the time. We make mistakes in logic and reason. With our 5 senses, we often make mistakes of perception like optical illusions, etc..During emergencies, we usually can react and perform quickly but actually do the wrong thing. Most people involved in accidents usually made a poor decision at some point.

1

Emotional decision are usually based in Ego and on Memory. Being able to make a decision based on non attachment seems to be the best course. See it for what it is and not for what you want it be , I reckon.

1

A considered combination of the two seems to be best.

1

I am with Sam on this, "Free will does not exist."

1

I force myself to look at the situation but we are not guided by the things that we think we are. You might have a certain food in mind all day, then go home and fix something else. Tis is not logical and it is not common sense.

0

I let both take the wheel because to me its logical to understand that humans have emotions for reasons of having quick-witted responses to certain situations instead of thinking through them all; for instance, why have to wait to think about evading a charging bull when you can just have a flight response anytime you see a charging bull.

My limits to emotions are when they're clouding my judgement and make me think of doing things that could make a situation go sour or worse. My limits on logic is when I want instincts to kick in sometimes, especially when they're necessary.

0

My process of decision starts off with identifying the emotional attachment / inclination to the matter at hand. When there is no attachment (majority of cases), it is purely driven by logic. When there is attachment, the logic steps in to the extent of ensuring that the decision is sustainable, emotionally and otherwise in the long run.

0

Common sense does exist, it is just both not common and oft wrong.

For instance following common sense the world looks flat, assuming it is so is the error.

0

It varies on any given day and context and I can only tell you what I think I know.

In emergency situations, it is logic all the way. In fact the less time I have to think about things, the more logical the decisions. On the other hand, I can make some pretty poor decisions in life that were not based on logic. For instance, I have been having trouble with my gallbladder and pancreas for some time. Instead of having dealt with it months ago, I am now faced with progressed symptoms.

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