Making Sense of Common Sense

“Use your common sense.” Aren’t we tired of hearing this? Most of us use this phrase in our day-to-day dealings almost without thinking. By common sense, do we mean what most people would do most of the time? Which sense do we refer to and what is common about it? Are we talking about information received through sensory organs, emotional feelings, intellectual understanding or something close to conscience? Can any sense be common to all? Is there a thing called ‘common sense’?

Merriam-Webster dictionary defines “Common sense” as “sound and prudent judgment based on a simple perception of the situation or facts.” Let’s also see what some of the famous personalities say about common sense:

• Common sense is instinct. Enough of it is genius (George Bernard Shaw)
• Common sense is genius dressed in its working clothes (Ralph Waldo Emerson)
• Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen (Albert Einstein)
• Common sense is the knack of seeing things as they are, and doing things as they ought to be done (Josh Billings)
• Common Sense is that which judges the things given to it by other senses (Leonardo da Vinci)
• The philosophy of one century is the common sense of the next (Henry Ward Beecher)

In the absence of a common understanding, use of common sense appears questionable. Human race has evolved through millennia of learning and growth from initial hunting age. Accordingly, our sense of perceiving different situations has also changed. However, everyone has not evolved equally. Even today there are people, amongst us, representing almost all ages of human evolution. Factors such as: gender, culture, beliefs, environment, education, experience, traditions, prejudices, etc. produce the whole variety of people. It is futile to expect everyone having sense that is common to all.

Notwithstanding the above, I like Josh Billings’ quotation, “Common sense is the knack of seeing things as they are, and doing things as they ought to be done.” By common, I guess, he means ‘simply’, ‘ordinarily’ or ‘obviously’. This makes sense to me. It is within everyone’s grasp to see things as they are, and do things as they ought to be done. If all are able to apply this power at their individual levels, what they would see and do will tend to be common and hence a common sense can prevail. But, it is easier said than done. In reality, we often see things through the lenses of our prejudices and act based on our likes and dislikes.

Seeing things as they are is seeing the truth, which is same for all. And, in truth lies all the possibilities for future growth. Newton, Einstein, Archimedes, Edison – each one of them simply saw the truth and discovered great laws of science. What was common sense to them, remained great mysteries for others before them. Even rocket science is based on principles derived from multitudes of common senses. I believe that every single scientific and technological advancement, that today’s world boasts of, was a common sense for someone at the start. All theories, philosophies, work of art and culture have evolved through commonsensical approach of rare individuals who dared to see things as they were in their times. I also believe that most of the political, social and inter-personnel problems are rooted in the fact that we have lost sight of the truth. Everyone is carrying a ‘hidden agenda’. Everyone is asking what is in it for me. No one cares to ask what is in it for everybody.

Through education and experience, we have lost simplicity and acquired sophistication. We have developed a knack of complicating everything. We no longer seek simple pleasures of life. We dwell in virtual reality. Sophisticated gizmos, that were meant to free us for enjoying life, have stolen the very life from us. We meet people on the net, shop online, telecommute to work and believe in everything digital. We are seeking life in the digital world, while the life is shining in full splendour just outside our windows.

Common sense has been the biggest casualty of current times. There is no reason why any conflict or problem, however big, can’t be resolved if all concerned dare to see things as they are and get committed to doing what ought to be done. Common sense is deeply rooted in simplicity and simplicity is sufficient for living. Are we ready to break out of virtual reality and park our prejudices? Do we wish to test the fruit of common sense, in real sense? There is no better time to start than NOW.

Is Life a Play?

In the famous play, “As you like it”, Shakespeare says:

“All the world's a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their entrances,

And one man in his time plays many parts…”

Was Shakespeare right? Is life really a play? If yes, why are we so stressed and unhappy? Have we misunderstood the mechanics of life? Is there something more than meets the eyes? Let’s closely examine if life, indeed, is a play.

Every play has a beginning and an end. Life too is confined between birth and death. There is a plot in every play with varying degree of twists and turns. Life is stranger than fiction. It also meanders through peaks of excitements and valleys of gloom. Sometimes a player enacts many roles in a play. In life, we are always enacting multiple roles – Parent, Spouse, Friend, Boss, Colleague, Engineer, Doctor, Accountant, Mentor, Student, and so on. Just like the actor, we also need to change our body language and modulate the pitch and tone of our voice according to situations and persons concerned. At home, we behave with spouse in one way and children in another way. At work, we cannot risk behaving with the boss in the same way as we behave with our colleagues or juniors. Then with friends, it is entirely a different ball-game. Like actors, we must rehearse our speech prior to appearing before a large gathering. Like actors, we must also dress and do make-up according to the situation and the occasion.

In play, while enacting variety of roles, the actor never forgets his real identity. He always remembers who he really is. He may have donned the most expensive clothes and crown to play a king. His body may even sway on the stage while taking a royal walk. But, he clearly knows that he has nothing to do with the character on the stage and he will be stripped of all the luxuries at the end of the play. Similarly, he may be playing a beggar evoking bouts of sympathy from spectators, but his mind remains devoid of any agony and, instead, may experience joy by watching the effect being cast on the spectators. In life too, we go from childhood to old age, experiencing many changes – by way of appearance, thoughts and beliefs. But, we never lose the “I”ness in and through all these changes (I was a child. I was a young man. Now, I am a senior citizen.) Indeed, it is with reference to this constant “I” that we are able to perceive all the changes in life. It is also abundantly clear to us that we came in this world bare-handed and would leave empty-handed. All so called possessions or sufferings would drop when the final bell rings. However, unable to remain detached with the roles being played, we experience all the ‘highs’ and ‘lows’. Our involvement in the role and inability to switch off as soon as the role of a character is completed creates all the miseries.

One form of play is the sport, which is played in the field, not on the stage. No sport or game can be played without setting certain rules. Likewise, a home; an office; a society or even a country needs a set of rules. Without rules, anarchy would prevail. Life too is governed by the laws of nature (such as “As you sow, so will you reap”), which are flawlessly enforced upon one and all. Anyone violating these laws must face consequences. Global warming is the collective consequence of individuals’ disturbing ecological balance of the nature. One may escape from human courts, but not from that of the nature. The real fun of living is in playing the game of life according to the laws of nature.

Every play has a director and a script. Coincidences or accidents, if any, are all part of the script. Every actor simply puts in his/her best performance according to the script. The director is the only one who holds the grand vision of the entire play and the best actor, indeed, is the one who can relate with the Director’s vision and surrender in his able hands. This comparison is, perhaps, the hardest bit to swallow in real life. If everything is pre-determined, why should we put in any effort? Why should we struggle so much to achieve anything? Ask an actor. He knows the play’s ending and yet he puts in so much effort in his role, because he enjoys acting. He often repeats the same role over and over again with increasing joy. Life in this respect is more interesting than the play, as the script is unknown and our individual part is revealed to us on the spot. Have we not been thrown into situations that we never imagined? Has anything happened exactly as we wished or planned? Didn’t we often experience being pushed into a certain direction despite all efforts and unwillingness? Every situation, however unpleasant, is part of a grand vision that we cannot conceive at that moment. But, looking back we understand that every bit of what happened was necessary to reach where we are today. We may either waste our energy in condemning any situation that we don’t like or play the offered part to the best of our ability, trusting in the grand vision of the unseen Director of our life’s script. Choice is entirely ours.

There is no better play than the life, if only we learn the art of viewing it objectively while various roles are being played in the spirit of a true actor.

Happiness is now or never

If life is in the present moment, where else could happiness be found but in the present? It is as simple as this. However, most of us keep searching for happiness all our lives. We read books, attend courses, join laughing clubs, take vacations to exotic places, indulge in delicious food, seek variety of entertainment, amass wealth, or take refuge in a sanctum. However, all we get are the fleeting moments of so-called happiness. Unbroken happiness remains a mirage.

The definition of happiness is varied as expressed by different people. Indeed, everyone holds his/her own definition of happiness. The common denominator of these definitions, however, is an external source of happiness. We believe that we will be happy when we get a certain object, being, environment, position, or recognition. However, those who have achieved all of these, sadly realise that their search for happiness is not over. There seems to be a fundamental flaw in defining happiness. Our so-called happiness is subject to various conditions, often external and beyond our control.

We must realise that happiness is a state of mind when there are no thoughts. We experience temporary happiness upon getting our desired object because at that moment, having satiated the desire, our mind becomes devoid of thoughts. But, soon thereafter, a thought of another desired object fills the void and the happiness is again lost.

If happiness resided in the previously desired object, it should have continued as that object is still with you. Thus we continue to ride the roller-coaster of fleeting happiness throughout our lives. Such happiness is directly proportional to the number of desires fulfilled and inversely proportional to the number of desires entertained, but not fulfilled.

Life exists only in the present moment. It is dead in the moment that has passed and is yet to be born in the future moment. The past moment will never return and the future moment will always appear as present moment. Hence, a real experience can only be in the present moment. But, to experience the present moment, one has to be aware of the present moment and be fully available for the experience. This is where we miserably fail.

We allow our minds to brood over past moments or be filled with future speculations and anxieties. As a result, although we are physically present in a given moment, our mind, being preoccupied with a variety of thoughts, is not ‘in’ that moment. How many times have we walked through a place without registering anything on the way? How many times have we attended a meeting or a seminar without actually listening to speakers? We mechanically pass through each moment. Life, therefore, is hardly lived, except in those rare moments when, by accident or coincidence, our mind is brought to the present moment. So, how can we consciously experience happiness in the present moment?

Every moment passes so swiftly that a mind concentrating on the moment cannot entertain any thought and hence experiences happiness. Thus, a mind which remains focused on every passing moment, enjoys unbroken happiness. But we are victims of our own old habits. We are so used to thinking about the past and the future that absence of a thought is unbearable. No doubt, it is a challenge to break this habit. But with persistent practice, it is achievable.

We may start by being watchful in simple tasks, such as sitting, walking, eating etc. In the beginning, we may not be able to keep our attention on the present task for long. The mind is sure to drift. But, whenever it returns to the present moment, thank yourself for making a dent in the old habit and resume unbiased observation. While walking, be aware of your body movements and the surroundings. While eating, enjoy the sight of different dishes, feel the heat, take in the aroma and slowly taste every bite. Even while doing nothing, simply be aware of incoming and outgoing breaths. Let this practice naturally grow without any guilt of missing the continuity. As it grows on you, happiness will ooze out of you. This is famously called ‘spontaneous living’.

This does not mean that we should not review our past actions for learning and should not plan for achieving a goal in the future. Indeed, even these activities can truly happen only in the present moment. While reviewing the past, pay full attention on analysing the events objectively, without letting the mind drift on the experiences associated with them. Similarly, while planning for the future, take stock of all the known things at that moment with full realisation that everything is subject to change and there is no need to be obsessed with what you have planned. There are many roads to a destination.

In conclusion, the present moment is the only door through which all possibilities and opportunities enter. We just have to be there. Someone has rightly said, “The best way to find happiness is not to search for it.”

"Safety First" is not merely a slogan

In the ancient time, there were only natural disasters. Now, we also have man-made crises. Natural disasters still happen, but their frequency and intensity lag far behind man-made catastrophes. Are we paying price of progress? Where did we go wrong?

The human mind is said to have no boundaries. Using this power, we have made astounding progress in the fields of science and technology. From ‘making fire by rubbing stones’ to ‘generating electricity through nuclear fission’, we have come a long way. We have harnessed natural powers to make our lives more comfortable and productive. However, this has not come free. Every technological advancement has come with its own inherent risks, which we claim to manage effectively. Modern cars are equipped with a load of safety features. Industrial plants are said to be built on fail-safe standards. We invest considerable amount of money in researching for the safest design. We study all the worst possible scenarios and claim to manage the risks as low as reasonably practicable through sophisticated safety systems. We develop stringent safety laws and standards. We set up enquiry commissions after every catastrophic incident and produce large volumes of investigation reports, which record pages after pages on the lessons learnt. But, are these lessons really learnt by human minds? Have we really stopped recurrence of similar failures?

It was scary to read the following statistics in a recent report published by KT:

• 3 people get killed on the road every minute,

• $ 3 trillion is the cost of road crashes every year, and

• 90% of road accidents happen due to human error.

Broad analysis of major industrial incidents also reveals that 90% of them can be attributed to the underlying safety culture at a facility making it acceptable for someone to ignore or bypass some critical step. Increased automation and loads of safety features seem to create a false sense of safety. Statistics have shown that more people die at pedestrian crossings than the ‘jay-walkers’, simply because people at pedestrian crossings often assume that vehicles would stop and hence become less alert. In a 1996 essay about the Challenger disaster, Malcolm Gladwell observed that “We have constructed a world in which the potential for high-tech catastrophe is embedded in the fabric of everyday life.” Having built systems with thousands of interacting components, we cannot possibly foresee all the ways they will behave under all circumstances, some of the circumstances themselves being unforeseeable.

Although we try to reduce inherent risks of any operation through safer design and/or operating procedure, human tendency is to consume this risk-reduction either by being aggressive in its usage or by being complacent with its false sense of safety. Higher the automation and sophistication, lower seems to be the human alertness. A machine can always be expected to perform as per its specifications. But, a human being cannot be expected to perform at its peak all the time. Emotions tend to greatly influence our actions. Even a competent person may fail under adverse emotions. While continuous training, knowledge-upgrade and competency assessments are important, taking care of emotional health is perhaps the most important factor in any safe operation. The human mind must remain motivated on the job. This, perhaps, is the single most critical responsibility of every team leader. A happy employee will always keep your clients happy.

We retain those lessons the longest, which we learnt through our own personal experiences. All other lessons we tend to forget after a short while, as our information-memory is short. This problem is further compounded by the lack of corporate memory due to which new employees often lack the benefits of lessons learnt by their predecessors. It is, therefore, necessary to convert such lessons in some form of personal experiences such as real-life simulations, rather than mere documented information. And, they should be repeated at regular intervals so as to become part of our spontaneous behaviours.

How we harness nature’s power is perhaps a more fundamental question. In ancient China, they say, when a master carpenter wanted to make a chair; he would go out to the forest asking which tree was willing to be cut for this purpose. The chair made out of such a tree lived for several decades without any degradation. Guiding a wild river from the mountains through barren lands spreads greenery and prosperity for generations. Consuming only those resources that we need for our day-to-day living would always leave enough resources for everybody on the earth. Nature likes to nurture harmony in everything. Any attempt to disturb this harmony will sooner or later result in serious backlash. Nature has strange ways of striking a balance.

Human intervention, however optimised, will always remain vital for any safe operation. Let “Safety First” not be a mere slogan. Next time, you step out to drive a car or operate a machine, check your emotion-meter for stability, expect the unexpected and pull out your attention-antenna all the way up.

Life is a beautiful package deal

How many times have we heard people saying, “I hate this life?” Everyone feels that his/her life is a hell, while all others are having a great fun. Life seems to be a stream of miseries from birth to death. At every step of life, we have something to complain about – be it a job, location, weather, finance, appearance, parents, friends, children, health, spouse, boss, colleagues, systems or destiny. The famous poet Nida Fazli has rightly captured this sentiment in the following couplet:

“Kabhi Kisi Ko Muqamal Jahan Nahin Milta

Kahin Zamin To Kahin Aasmaan Nahi Milta”

[No one ever gets a complete world,

Sometime the ground and sometime the sky is missing.]

Are we then destined to suffer in life? I believe it depends upon us. It depends upon how we look at life. If we look at one aspect in isolation of all other aspects, then we will always find something amiss. However, the nature has designed this world in a package form. A rose always blooms with thorns to protect its tender petals. Scorching sun is always followed by the comforting moon. A physical disability is counterbalanced by extra-ordinary efficiency of some other organ. You may not have a high-profile job, but may be free from a dreaded disease. You may not have a home of your own, but you may have friends to host you anywhere in the world. You may not have a fat bank-balance, but you may win hearts by sharing whatever you have. Your appearance may not be attractive, but your personality may be influential. Your spouse may not measure up to your expectations, but he/she may be able to complement your short-comings. Your parents may not be modern, but their hearts may be filled with unconditional love. Your children may not have done well in studies, but they may respect you and hold highest regards for the humanity. You may not have scaled great heights in your career, but you may have been blessed with understanding bosses and compassionate colleagues. You may have only one friend, but he/she may be the one with whom you can open your heart. You may not be living in a happening city, but you may create your own world of interesting hobbies. You may have to deal with a corrupt system, but you may use it to test your own moral strength. In the nature, perfection of a whole is the sum total of its seemingly imperfect parts. The sign that adorned wall of Einstein’s office at Princeton read, “Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts.”

Destiny is directly proportional to what we have or haven’t done. There is no use of complaining about destiny. Worrying will not take away tomorrow’s troubles; it will only take away today’s peace. E. M. Foster says, “We must be willing to let go of the life we have planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” Same actions will always produce same results. If we want something to change, we have to do something different. Every difficulty is an opportunity to rise above present condition. Nature brings about growth in everything through challenging circumstances. The very birth of a child is through intense pain of delivery. Let’s develop a wholesome view of every situation. Life is indeed a beautiful package deal.

Analysis paralysis

We need information to make decisions at every stage of our lives. But, how much information is enough to make a ‘good’ decision. Unfortunately, there is neither fixed rule nor standard guidelines to follow. Choice is entirely individual. We generally believe that more the information better will be the decision. But, is it really so? This is what Sharon Begley has attempted to answer in her article (“Too much data leads to fatigue”, KT, 2nd Mar 2011).

It is now certain that more information, beyond a point, is indeed counter-productive. We often find people locked-up in the state of ‘analysis paralysis’. They either take no decision or pick a poorer alternative. Internet has opened a flood-gate of information. The convenience of finding more information tempts us to continue the search. In the process, we even lose focus on the goal of the search. When should you stop searching for more information? Sometimes, an external deadline helps in breaking this deadlock. We are forced to stop the search and take some decision. But, what if there was no deadline set?

A silver lining is provided by Malcolm Gladwell in his famous book, “The Blink”. According to him, our subconscious mind is like a giant computer which can process enormous amount of information at lightning speed and provide the results in form of ‘gut-feelings’ or intuitions. For example, when we meet a person first time, we instantly get a gut-feeling about that person, while our conscious mind is still busy forming an opinion. We often also realize later that our intuitive feelings were much more on target than the informed opinions provided by our conscious mind. This is because our subconscious mind is able to absorb and process much more information about the person we are meeting, such as the body language, subtle mannerisms, voice quality, body contact, etc. In a group or large gathering, our subconscious mind can even be trained to tap into what is known as ‘universal mind’ with unlimited power. He, therefore, suggests developing sharp receptivity for intuitions / gut-feelings and incorporating the same into the decision making process by the conscious mind.

We must also accept that no decision can be ‘perfect’. We would stop learning if all decisions were perfect. A ‘timely’ decision is more important than a ‘perfect’ decision. We tend to learn more from our bad decisions than a delayed perfect decision. Delaying a decision on the excuse of inadequate information is an attempt to evade responsibility in life. We are too scared to face a failure. However, knocks and shocks of various circumstances, indeed, shape and enrich our lives. Information is a tool, not the goal. Given the same amount of information, different people would take different decisions based on their individual maturity, background and needs. Hence, there cannot be a universally correct decision for everybody. Using the same stock market information, one person feels happy to sell a stock while another person happily buys the same stock. It is important to collect relevant information and pursue methodical analysis. But, we should also keep our intuition antenna up and stop further analysis as soon as strong intuitive feelings arise about a certain course of action.

Next time you go shopping and get lost on many equally tempting items, don’t turn to your spouse or friend for help. They will confuse you more. Just close your eyes while holding each item and turn inward for signals from within. The voice for the most favourable item will be loud and clear. Can there be an easier way to deal with ‘analysis paralysis’?

Office in the Swimming Pool

Bravo Bikram Vohra for presenting a true metaphor of an office life in form of various people visiting a swimming pool (“I know the people in the pool”, Wknd. 25 Feb 2011). They do everything except what they come there for. They float, splash around, sun-tan, exhibit branded gears, make lots of noise, sneak in from behind or under, come and go in a hurry and do monkey business but hardly swim. However, it is ironical that they are the people who get noticed and rewarded, while the quite slogger remains out-of-sight and out-of-mind. They share the same perks and facilities (same water), hardly contributing anything in return. Life seems unfair for those who work. But, oblivious of such unfair treatment, these few individuals at every work place continue to pour their heart into work. They are the rare human darts cutting through the blue water, without any noise and splash, drawing awe and envy of the onlookers. They don’t waste their energy and time in gossiping, criticizing or complaining. They conserve and use their energy in rising to higher orbits of performance. Reward for them is incidental, as they enjoy the very act of doing. Hats off to such Human Darts. Corporate world would do a huge favour to itself by recognizing and rewarding this rare breed of workers.