“There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so,” William Shakespeare, Hamlet.
Between ads, news headlines, social media posts, emails and other direct communication, we are exposed to thousands of messages a day. Chances are, you’re making a snap judgment about whether what you just saw was “good” or “bad” within nanoseconds of seeing it. In fact, how many times have you used the terms “good” and “bad” so far today?
Weather: good or bad. News: good or bad. Frolicking puppies: good. Political commentary: bad. (Unless it reflects our own views.) It’s human nature to evaluate every data point, image, or idea that comes our way. It’s, in part, how we manage our time and precious attention bandwidth; we pay attention to “good” things and try to avoid “bad” things.
But what if evaluation was standing in the way of happiness? That’s what Lorraine Besser, Professor of Philosophy at Middlebury College in Vermont, believes. She writes, “I’m a philosopher who specializes in happiness, well-being and the good life. I study how one’s state of mind influences one’s experiences of the world.”
“In my recent book ‘The Art of the Interesting,’ she says, “I explore the ways the evaluative perspective squashes your ability to experience psychological richness and other positive dimensions of life. The more you instinctively react with a “good” or a “bad,” the less of the world you take in. You’ll be less likely to engage your mind, exercise curiosity and have interesting experiences.”
Your initial evaluation, she says, narrows your focus to what is good or bad about what you’re seeing. You see storm clouds on the horizon that will ruin your picnic, but your focus on the bad weather makes you miss the breathtaking cloud formations or the spectacular sunset and cooler evening caused by the storm’s passing.
You also miss what’s happening outside of the “good” or “bad” issue. You’re so locked in on your evaluation that you don’t see how other people or the environment is reacting. You don’t see leaves on trees turning up to receive the rain, or a child’s wonder as they look up at the darkening sky.
Lorraine Besser says, “When snap evaluations reign, you effectively shut yourself off from a wide range of possible experiences. When everything around you is just good or bad, nothing can be perplexing, mysterious or intriguing. Nothing can be simply new, or simply challenging, or simply stimulating.”
I’m an avid foodie, and I see people do this all the time when they taste new things. It’s hard for some people to get over aversions to specific kinds of food – vegetable or animal. They cling to their childhood memory of the first time they tasted mushrooms or the first time they smelled funky cheese. It takes imagination to conceive that different preparation will change a food’s flavor profile. Steamed cauliflower: boring and bland. Roasted cauliflower: deep, rich, and delicious. “Different,” for many people, is not a compliment or even a neutral observation; it’s a synonym for bad.
That’s just one example, but it’s one that everyone can relate to. Your first impression of anything: food, art, music, or people, might change over time as you experience nuances and see them (or yourself) evolve over time.
Limiting yourself and your thinking to snap judgments limits your ability to see and appreciate the world around you. Opening your mind up to possibilities also unlocks your creativity and your ability to empathize and connect with others.
The world will be a more beautiful and interesting place, and you’ll be a happier person. Try it on tomorrow and see how you feel.
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