Our mind is more astounding than a super-computer. It develops, creates, analyses, nurtures, balances, gauges, organises and also judges perceptions at the speed of thought — without waiting for the system, or processes, to ‘boot.’
What is most astonishing is the fusion of countless mental processes into one whole. Add to this millions of functional dynamics, through which our thinking processes work together, and you get a feeling that we are all exceptional, albeit we use just a small percentage of our innate abilities.
We are, likewise, endowed with a rare gift — timing. It is not just batters, in cricket, that value timing; everyone knows what is the ‘best time’ to organise ideas, or evaluate a given situation. Timing is everything. It is for everybody — right from leaving for work to setting your loved one’s heart aflutter. Timing is as important to our thinking processes as it is to using judgment. Do we all not make a mess of things when we don’t get our timing right? Erroneous timing can be dodgy, also disastrous.
One of the complex forms of the thinking process is the ‘power of judgment.’ It is more vital than cognitive skills — though it may cause problems, more so when it dictates thinking patterns. It would, therefore, be appropriate, as poet John Keats suggested, to keep judgment in suspended animation until a fitting moment places our thinking processes on an even keel. This is, of course, easier said than done — but, it is worth a good try. It is certainly true that creative abilities play a major role in judgment. But, it would only be prudent to allow judgment to evolve. Otherwise, it may wobble our latent creative abilities and potential.
You cannot sport an emotional ribbon each time you have to judge, or take a decision. Remember, rushing through judgment is not only counter-productive, it can also get us into problems. Judgments have set patterns. Most often, they emanate from a combination of past experiences, present information, and also instinctive sensitivities. All this, of course, is dependent on precise directives — including a right blend of judgment and logic. When our thinking patterns are haphazard, or tilted, our judgmental excursions can impair our best intentions, if not efforts. Picture this. Flawed judgments are most likely a result of prejudice, intolerance, or baser human elements of thought and thinking.
What does this signify? That our judgmental attributes can be our best chum, or our nastiest foe. When channelled in the right direction, it can plot a route out of danger. When not in sync, it can sink our ship of distorted thought. Most often, we can sense what our judgment in a given situation is most likely without being conscious of its exactitude. When we are not clear, or convinced, we can always defer, or set aside judgment for another day. This is an attribute that we are all born with — what needs to be charted, or cultivated, is a mindful and conscientious endeavour that sets right our thought processes.
In order to make good judgment work, we need to ‘fix’ anger, bias and fear — these are not appropriate attributes for progress. In addition, one should make haste slowly. Doing things far too quickly and bringing in changes overnight can, at times, upset your applecart, or the ground beneath your feet. This is also one of the major triggers of stress, mayhem, resentment and apprehension. The best thing one can do is — integrating holistic thinking into one’s daily life in a step-by-step manner. Once this is achieved, you are on the path, or boulevard, of a learned, cultivated process that promotes optimal judgment.
