‘Good' vs. ‘bad' snap judgments make you less interesting, philosopher says
How many times have you used the words good or bad today?
From checking your weather app to monitoring the progress you've made on your to-do list, to scrolling through social media, opportunities to make snap evaluations abound. And the more you sort things into these categories, the more instinctive making these judgments becomes. You may find yourself filtering everything that comes your way in terms of good or bad.
A dark cloud triggers 'bad,' a social media post of baby animals triggers 'good,' a news story about a political scuffle triggers 'bad.' Whether you think something is good or bad, or worthy of a like or not, is an important piece of information. But if that categorization is the only thing that's on your mind, the only lens through which you interpret the world, you'll miss out on a lot.
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, 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.
Evaluation narrows your mind
When you instinctively label something as good or bad, you focus only on the features that make that thing good or bad.
You look outside, and all you see is the darkness of the clouds, threatening your plans for the day. You don't notice the cooling shade those clouds create, nor the dramatic ways the wind makes them morph. You don't notice the flowers unfurling, nor the child walking by who is also looking up at the clouds, but with a wide-eyed look of wonder.
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. Nothing is interesting, for your mind has filtered out these possible sources of cognitive engagement. It sees what it expects, and nothing else.
Open your mind for more psychological richness
Snap evaluations narrow your perspective and limit your mind's potential to connect and engage with other aspects of your experiences. But you can unlock this potential simply by resisting any instinct to judge and instead viewing the world without trying to evaluate what you see.
Right away, you'll start to notice more, and you'll activate your mind's internal drives for curiosity and exploration.
Freed from the dead-end judgments of good/bad, you can explore what is novel, allow yourself to be challenged, and tackle the complexities inherent to human experiences. Traffic jams can become sources of intrigue, rather than just a bad way to start your day. Delicious meals won't just taste good—they'll spark your curiosity and stimulate your creativity. You'll go from seeing a coworker as difficult and irritating to recognizing them as an individual with human imperfections who's deserving of your compassion.
You'll also feel the pains, struggles, and rewards that arise through these mental engagements. You'll experience rich, intense moments and a greater range of emotions. You'll find your life chock-full of unusual and unique experiences with very few instances of boredom and monotony.
Over time, your mind will become more adept at finding connections, exercising creativity, and operating from a place of cognitive complexity. You'll start to view the world more holistically, as full of connections waiting to be discovered.
All of these are signs that your life has become more psychologically rich.
Expand your mind, expand your sense of self
Psychological richness and, more generally, experiences of novelty and interestingness are valuable on their own. But there's evidence that they're also important due to their effects on your sense of self. When you engage in new, interesting activities, you not only broaden your horizons and develop fresh perspectives, but you also become more confident in your ability to do whatever comes next. In these ways, you expand your very sense of self.
The connection between psychological richness and self-expansion is intuitive. Novel, interesting activities stimulate the mind, challenging it to engage and explore. This process can expand your confidence in your abilities and provide you with a greater sense of control over your environment. As one's sense of self expands, one's very presence within the world shifts.
One recent study explored the influence of psychological richness on pro-environmental behavior. While it's common to feel sad, anxious, angry, powerless, and helpless in the face of climate change, developing psychological richness can transform these negative attitudes.
Researchers found that people who experience psychological richness were more willing to engage in sustainable activities. They believe this correlation is mediated by self-expansion, which helps subjects feel more confident that their actions would have an impact on the daunting problem of climate change.
Cut out good and bad, go for interesting instead
Everyone has the capacity to develop a sense of presence and agency in the world that enhances the very experience of life. A habit of snap evaluations inhibits this capacity, but you can train your mind to be more apt to engage and explore.
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