Should we shun the counsel of the world to avoid trouble whenever possible?

Ok I’ve been dealing with this for a while and not sure how I feel about being “second guessed.”  How do you feel about it?  I have a feeling we all feel the same way. But, if I really can be second guessed, perhaps that means that my first effort was a guess.  It shouldn’t be, but sometimes I suppose it is.

So, I guess my point is that second guessing should never really happen.  If I’m doing it to someone else, I’m being judgmental.  If I’m doing it to myself, I shouldn’t have been guessing to begin with.

You’re probably guessing that I’ve said enough about this. You’re probably right.

Some would say that we are motivated by need.  I don’t agree.  I’ll never lose the twenty pounds I need to lose just because I need to.  I’ll not eliminate a bad habit because of need.  I won’t even discipline myself in the area of spending if it is based only on need.  I’m just like you.  I generally do what I want to do.  Self-discipline is about getting my “want to” lined up with my “need to.”

A turtle makes no progress unless he has his neck out. On the other hand, he’s safer if he keeps his head under his shell. But then of course he can’t see where he’s going. It doesn’t matter, though, because he isn’t going anywhere. There are many organizations that stay in a safe mode all the time. They manage to get by but they don’t accomplish very much. They can’t see where there going but it doesn’t matter; they aren’t going anywhere. That’s not true of this organization. If it was, we couldn’t describe it as “special.”

Okay, it’s not like I’m old or anything but many years ago, I “knew” the answers to a lot of very important questions. Today, if I’m completely honest with myself, I realize that I was wrong about many of them. Why, then, would I consider my opinions flawless today? I guess I always wanted to be right and frankly thought I was. Don’t get me wrong, I still want to be right but it seems lately am more aware that I’m often not.

“What’s your point?” I don’t know… just thinking out loud. Maybe I just need to remind myself that opinions are just that… opinions.

As all of you know, the use of context clues is a good tool for understanding the meaning of a word.  A word in isolation may have many different meanings, but when it is used in a sentence, that meaning becomes much clearer.

We sometimes interpret the intentions of other people incorrectly because we see what they do out of context.  We don’t have a good understanding of the circumstances that might be influencing their actions.  On the other hand, we see ourselves in context.

Just one more reason we shouldn’t judge.  

Recently, I read a story about  fish suppliers who were having problems shipping codfish from the East Coast. By the time the fish reached the West coast, they were spoiled. They froze them, but by the time the fish arrived, they were mushy. They decided to send them alive. But the fish arrived dead so they tried sending the fish alive again, but with one difference. They included a catfish in each tank. By the time the codfish arrived, they were alive and well.  Apparently, spending the entire trip fleeing the catfish had kept them alive and well.

We all have catfish in our lives.  Typically, we complain about them.  Maybe we should be thankful.  They may be keeping us alive!