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ChangingMinds Blog! > Blog Archive > 06-Dec-15

 


Sunday 06-December-15

Idealism vs. reasonable uncertainty

Reality is messy. Really messy. There no black or white other than what we perceive. Yet seeing things in absolute terms makes life so much easier. There are good people and bad people. Religious or scientific texts are believed to be absolutely true. We listen to others and are sure we know just what they mean.

Living thoughtfully is harder when it means never wholly knowing what is right or wrong, good or bad. Knowing others may be for or against us, but not knowing which makes responding to ambiguous comments much more difficult. It means never quite feeling safe or right, even though knowing this is more truthful than the certainty of idealism.

Idealists and realists tend not to get on, each seeing the other as misguided at best and malign at worst. The idealist says 'this is true', to which the realist says 'well, not really'. The idealist says 'you are wrong' and the realist says 'possibly' but continues in the belief they are more right than the simplified position of the idealist.

Idealism and extremism often go hand in hand. Both left wing and right wing politicians can only sustain their views by ignoring inconvenient data, such as limited finances and the refusal of societies to blindly obey laws and commands they believe are wrong' or unfair. Religions can also tend towards moralistic idealism, where 'I am right so you are wrong' is a common simplification.

In the end, life is often best lived as a paradoxical combination of both realism and idealism, where we learn what we can, then use reasoned choice moderated by ideals to guide our actions.

Idealists should accept that two people can believe different things without one being wrong, while realists should forgive idealists their ignorance and accept that their beliefs are simply what works for them and are therefore valid.


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Site Menu

| Home | Top | Quick Links | Settings |

Main sections: | Disciplines | Techniques | Principles | Explanations | Theories |

Other sections: | Blog! | Quotes | Guest articles | Analysis | Books | Help |

More pages: | Contact | Caveat | About | Students | Webmasters | Awards | Guestbook | Feedback | Sitemap | Changes |

Settings: | Computer layout | Mobile layout | Small font | Medium font | Large font | Translate |

 

 

Please help and share:

 

Quick links

Disciplines

* Argument
* Brand management
* Change Management
* Coaching
* Communication
* Counseling
* Game Design
* Human Resources
* Job-finding
* Leadership
* Marketing
* Politics
* Propaganda
* Rhetoric
* Negotiation
* Psychoanalysis
* Sales
* Sociology
* Storytelling
* Teaching
* Warfare
* Workplace design

Techniques

* Assertiveness
* Body language
* Change techniques
* Closing techniques
* Conversation
* Confidence tricks
* Conversion
* Creative techniques
* General techniques
* Happiness
* Hypnotism
* Interrogation
* Language
* Listening
* Negotiation tactics
* Objection handling
* Propaganda
* Problem-solving
* Public speaking
* Questioning
* Using repetition
* Resisting persuasion
* Self-development
* Sequential requests
* Storytelling
* Stress Management
* Tipping
* Using humor
* Willpower

Principles

+ Principles

Explanations

* Behaviors
* Beliefs
* Brain stuff
* Conditioning
* Coping Mechanisms
* Critical Theory
* Culture
* Decisions
* Emotions
* Evolution
* Gender
* Games
* Groups
* Habit
* Identity
* Learning
* Meaning
* Memory
* Motivation
* Models
* Needs
* Personality
* Power
* Preferences
* Research
* Relationships
* SIFT Model
* Social Research
* Stress
* Trust
* Values

Theories

* Alphabetic list
* Theory types

And

About
Guest Articles
Blog!
Books
Changes
Contact
Guestbook
Quotes
Students
Webmasters

 

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© Changing Works 2002-
Massive Content — Maximum Speed