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Austria24038 Posts
This is something I've noticed more and more and am finally able to put into words. In all aspects of our life, even in SC2 (although this blog has little to do with it), I find there's generally two sorts of options to pursue if you're making decisions. And since I'm a fan of categories, here's the two I've got for you this time.
1) Pleasant decisions. The most important goal when making a pleasant decision is not to solve the problem in a lasting, sustainable, permanent fashion. Instead, the goal is to convince yourself that you're addressing the issue at hand while really the underlying aim is to avoid hardship that may potentially happen when making a "right" decision.
2) Right/true decisions. Right decisions are harder to make, most of the time. The goal is to solve the problem without any loose ends. They're usually harder to make because every choice means abandoning one option in favor of another. The more difficult the problem to solve, the more difficult it will naturally be to make the right decision.
To help you follow my train of thought on this, here's an example. You're in a relationship that you've built together, but run into groundbreaking issues that cannot be solved. The easy, pleasant decision might be to stay together anyway and try to ignore the problem. Maybe with time, things will iron out - right?
No. That's easy. It's pleasant, it's a safety mechanism to protect you from pain. Addressing these issues and taking necessary measures would be the true choice. And if the measure necessary is to break up - so be it. Hard, painful, not easy. But this is what ultimately solves a problem.
I'm telling you all this because it can be applied to any choice or decision that presents itself, and I just so happen to have had my own tough choices to make recently. I tried to do things the right way, but I can't say that the other party involved in the process did. That's what motivated me to write this in the end, although I've been thinking about it for a while.
In a way, you can blame almost all our problems on everyone doing things the easy way. Running out of oil? Start a war, we need that oil at the moment. We'll deal with whatever problems arise later. Refugees? Build walls, we'll figure something out and then we'll see. Running out of arguments? Try violence. Scared of being with someone and facing issues that might come with it? Well, call it off then. Your company invested millions and lost it all? Blame someone else, never own up to it. Need to stay ahead of your rivals in your market niche? Produce in China, use slave children to work for you.
I hate the pleasant way more than anything else. It shows cowardice and an inability to stay above it all and take all factors into consideration, then make calm and intelligent, sustainable decisions. The profits of doing things the easy way exist - they're real. But they're short lived and the potential harm is often larger than if you'd made done things the right way from the start.
It's the slow, dreadful death by a thousand cuts rather than the one swift, clean cut. Neither are pretty, but one does the job much faster and cleaner than the other, with much less suffering.
Do things the right way. Don't be a coward. Life sucks at times, deal with it. The good times will be all the better for it.
PS: lichter shoutout -__-
  
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I like de blog.
Although sometimes you only realize a little later what the "right" decision would have been while you got overwhelmed by struggling emotions. Sometimes I have a hard time distinguishing if not taking a risk is the ballsy move or taking it. So more often than not you gotta learn to listen to your gut and not convince yourself xyz may be right for all the wrong reasons. My current wisdom and solution to this is finding some kind of self-sufficiency in terms of emotion and relaxtion. Don't make rushed decisions, or don't force yourself to actions you somehow, somewhere know are only counterproductive. More or less what you also said with killing a lot of options at once but at least not being a coward for it.
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What happened to Plexa and Waffles? Weren't you about to duel someone?
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United States27254 Posts
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1001 YEARS KESPAJAIL22212 Posts
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Austria24038 Posts
On February 23 2016 14:23 hellokitty[hk] wrote:
What happened to Plexa and Waffles? Weren't you about to duel someone?
Broken promises happened
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Took the easy way out giving Lichter a shoutout.
In a way I agree with you on doing things the right way. Yet I do things the easy (even wrong) way a lot of the time. It's not always within people's means to wrap up all troubles neatly with a bow. I think you're simplifying the problem by presenting real life decision making as a dichotomy where one is clearly superior and just requires all human beings to have a tad of character in exchange for a perfect world.
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Nice blog, but I have to disagree a little bit.
Our decisions are rarely so black and white. Sure there is the easy way out, along with the difficult path, but there are many options available. Perhaps there is an easy way that works best, or maybe the 'right' choice will take too long and we don't have time to take that path.
Life is rarely so simple that we are presented with only 2 choices: the easy way vs. the right way.
As Saechiis stated,
I think you're simplifying the problem by presenting real life decision making as a dichotomy where one is clearly superior and just requires all human beings to have a tad of character in exchange for a perfect world.
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I think it's more of a range than just two extremes, but I agree on your description of those 2 "directions".
There's a metaphor I learned a while back that I think pictures this quite well.
The easy way out is like an old pillow. Sure, it's yellow-ish, isn't as comfy as it used to be, but that's the one you always had. Your head shaped it over the years, it feels natural to rest on it. Of course, you'd probably be better off with a new one, and you know that, but you've spent many fine nights on that pillow, you don't really NEED to change it.
Doesn't apply as well to nations starting wars for oil or things like that, but on a personal level, it's quite fitting.
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Dropping the DarkLord? Wow big changes.
Hang in there man!
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"For what is each day, than a series of decisions, between the easy way and the right way?"
Was one of the lines in a motivational video that stuck in my head, now you shed some light on it, thank you! 
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i think it's extremely rare to be completely fair with your decisions, whether they're right, wrong, or your ideal.
they most often affect more than one other person in your life, and that's not even including yourself.
an individual won't even realize what's good for themselves.
in your example of the relationship, most if not everything is not unsolvable, it just requires an even heavier amount of effort and belief on top of the cognizances necessary to recognize the situation. i have faith that that's one step beyond the breakup, or having the solution in tow as necessary. of course, there's even more levels beyond even that.
i don't think it's taking the easier, or the more pleasant way per say. It's how much you're willing to invest and potentially lose in the process because of the mysterious outcome of what you cannot predict, or cannot control.
as much as people are logical, some things exist and are endearing because they make no sense at all.
many people form decisions based on that.
many occupations, situations, etc. are hinged on empathy and understanding on a constant basis.
if you think things represent cowardice because they're done to save feelings and face, then most people shouldn't be working jobs that are necessary everyone elses' every day life--including your very own. it's not like they're choosing to do what they do as self-sacrafice, or even because it's simple and easy to do, and it's not even worth arguing about what is really happening in the minds of everyone who chooses or ends up working at the bottom of the barrel.
the point is that there's always something better, for you, and for others, but all it is is you trying to do the best that you can do in the moment. there is a problem when you stop yearning for more, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's a bad thing either. it's simply an opinion or a belief system based on you and your experiences up until that point.
and once again, it is all completely subjective and everyone is making the "wrong" choice constantly regardless of their wishes.
i think you need to work out what you want, and stop focusing on others. there are plenty of fish in the sea, and you (and hypothetically, everyone) make less than ideal decisions despite your efforts, all the damn time.
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I agree with the general frame of your thought, tough I'd say the the "right" decision is often the one with the best gains vs risks balance, because decisions inherently have both predictable/likely and unpredictable/unlikely outcomes.
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Although I like the concept of what you're talking about: breaking up is definitely the pleasant choice in your example.
It is much harder to fix problems than to run away from problems. Staying is always the harder choice.
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I like the theory. I'm guilty of of picking pleasant in relationships, business, cleanliness. What's funny is how your worldview really shapes the examples. I might agree with 20% if that.
In a way, you can blame almost all our problems on everyone doing things the easy way. Running out of oil? Start a war, we need that oil at the moment. We'll deal with whatever problems arise later. Refugees? Build walls, we'll figure something out and then we'll see. Running out of arguments? Try violence. Scared of being with someone and facing issues that might come with it? Well, call it off then. Your company invested millions and lost it all? Blame someone else, never own up to it. Need to stay ahead of your rivals in your market niche? Produce in China, use slave children to work for you.
Threats overseas? Ignore them. We'll treat each instance as a one-off. Refugees? Import them all! We'll deal with violence and assimilation later. We all know to lead with our feelings not our heads. Running out of arguments? Shift the subject, twist the blame, incite and provoke, violence. Special interests want their gravy train again? Pass the pork, you have little to gain for following your conscience towards a new world. Market taxation and regulation driving more manufacturing overseas? Blame evil companies that use third-world labor. Blame globalization. Look no farther than the low-wage labor, definitely don't look at no-wage unemployment!
I don't want to dredge up the ideological divide. I'm just amazed how it varies from person to person.
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Austria24038 Posts
Oh absolutely, I probably should have made that clear actually. I don't believe in an objective "right/wrong". What the "right" thing is varies from person to person, everyone needs something different.
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everyone needs a swift cut
I for one will heed your advice and get a haircut
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I recommend reading Daniel Kahneman's Thinking, Fast and Slow if you are interested in this topic. Kahneman is a Nobel winning psychologist, in part because of the research discussed in this book. Basically there are two different brain systems that evolved at different times, the primitive animal brain that instinctively makes quick decisions, and the advanced human brain which houses the consciousness, which can determine things in detail, but is energy intensive and lazy.
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