Crowdsourcing Wisdom

What wisdom have you learned along the way?

The nice thing about wisdom is that you can learn it.  No one is born wise. We all learn through experience. And through experience and adversity learn, hopefully, how to do and be better next time. In order to learn, we have to be willing to admit, we aren’t perfect.

For me, part of my practice as a Humanist, is to admit that I’m an idiot a lot. More than I would like. But I find that when I admit my flaws, I am better able to improve myself.  I no longer consider making a mistake a bad thing. I truly do think of it as a learning opportunity.

Inc. Magazine ran a list of 30 nuggets of wisdom they gleaned from Quora (see: http://www.inc.com/richard-feloni/30-things-you-need-to-know-to-be-successful.html)

It comes as no surprise that much of the wisdom is consistent with the Humanist approach that I teach. The prescription for how to live a happy and productive life hasn’t really changed much over the years.  Anyway – here are my favorite bits gleaned from Inc.’s gleaning.

6. You have a responsibility to everyone, and a responsibility for only yourself.
7. Prepare for the unexpected.
11. Biases affect everything you do.
16. You must take care of your health.
19. Forgive others and yourself.
20. Seek a greater purpose.
21. Life is short.
26. Everyone is afraid.
28. Nothing is perfect.

What wisdom have you learned and want to share?

The Wisdom of the Ages

Finding value in meaningless platitudes.

In her book, You Learn By Living, Eleanor Roosevelt quotes from another book called South Wind written by Norman Douglas.  Here is the quote.

“What is all wisdom save a collection of platitudes? Take fifty of our current proverbial sayings – they are so trite, so threadbare, that we can hardly bring our lips to utter them. None the less they embody the concentrated experience of the race, and the man who orders his life according to their teaching cannot go far wrong. How easy that seems! Has anyone ever done so? Never. Has any man ever attained to inner harmony by pondering the experience of others? Not since the world began! He must pass through the fire.”

The problem with platitudes is that they are so simple they are useless in real life. Reality requires a more nuanced approach.  This is why Humanists embrace situational ethics.  We recognize that in certain situations, our normal rules of conduct may not apply.

But that doesn’t mean they never apply.  Because most of the time they do.  It’s just that in the real world we need to be prepared for the exceptions.

I think the key to understanding the value of a platitude is to understand why the adage or platitude for how to live was devised in the first place.  That way you understand the intent of the platitude so that you can adjust your behavior when the situation requires, thus getting the benefit of this “ancient wisdom” without falling prey to the inane meaningless simplicity of it all.

What do you think? What is your favorite platitude and why?  And which ones should never be uttered ever again?

What is Wisdom?

What is wisdom and why is attaining wisdom so important to personal well being?

It turns out that while everyone wishes they were wise, finding a good definition of what wisdom is, is rather difficult. It’s a state of knowledge that is practical. A wise person is someone who not only can tell what is true and what isn’t, but who is able to apply that knowledge to everyday life, so that they can live more successfully. A wise person is able to navigate their relationships better and basically, not suffer as much over every day hassles that plague the rest of us mere mortals.

It turns out though, that some psychiatrists decided to study what it means to be wise and came up with the following definition based on surveys of wisdom experts.  (see: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/188170.php)

Here’s how they define wisdom:
• It is uniquely human.
• It is a form of advanced cognitive and emotional development that is experience-driven.
• It is a personal quality, albeit rare.
• It can be learned, increases with age and can be measured.
• It is probably not enhanced by taking medication.

It’s the second bit that resonates the most with me. Wisdom is an advanced cognitive and emotional development that is experience driven. Immature thinkers are not wise. That’s good to know.

For me, part of the goal of practicing Humanist skills like Freethought and critical thinking and learning to harness my emotions rather than being ruled by them is because, like everyone, I recognize that being wise is a state I would like to attain.

Why? Because according to the Free Dictionary by Farlex – definition #4 of wisdom is “A wise outlook, plan or course of action.”  Having wisdom allows you to be wise and that allows you to choose effective courses of actions. The more effective and good your actions are, the better your life is, the more personal control you have in your life and that translates directly into an improved state of personal wellbeing.

I’m told I’m wise and that I have a lot of wisdom. That I exist in near constant state of stupid happy contented bliss despite the vicissitudes of life is probably an indication that these assessments of my knowledge as “wise” are well founded. How did I achieve this state of advanced cognitive and emotional development? Through practice.

Learn how to think better and practice being more compassionate and you will be wise too. After all, according to the psychiatrists – it’s something that can be learned. And yes, this is the same prescription for wisdom that Humanist and Humanistic thinkers have been preaching and teaching throughout the entire course of human history.  It’s amazing to me that people still look for shortcuts. There are not shortcuts. You don’t need any mystical wisdom or woo to become wise. You either learn how to think better or you don’t. You either practice being compassionate or you don’t. This is why I teach basic Humanist life skills. So others can learn the practical skills needed to become wise. If you want to learn more, get my books and check out my courses (https://humanistlearning.com)