Irrationality: Hallmark of Greatness?

A guest post by Kent Thune, author of The Financial Philosopher.

“Imagination is more important than knowledge.” ~ Albert Einstein

It can’t be done. No one in their right mind would attempt this. One person can’t make a difference. The world is flat.  These are not necessarily negative thoughts — they are all rational thoughts.

The human brain is finite — it has its limits. Beyond knowledge, especially the kind obtained by personal experience or empirical evidence, there is little remaining for the brain to grasp, from which decisions can be made. The brain, therefore, wants to categorize, stereotype, form habits, and find the quickest route from Point A to Point B — it wants to rationalize — to provide safety, to find comfort…

But what lies beyond rationality? The short answer for most of us is anxiety — anxiety that arises from the fear of the unknown, the unidentified, the hidden, things yet to be categorized. It is at this moment of weakness — upon the first appearance of uncertainty — that you begin to categorize… You justify, you rationalize. This rationalization is based upon preconceived notions — a bias to a certain way of thinking without much regard for (or thought of) a potentially more realistic, truthful, valuable, redeeming alternative — the opportunity for growth, for discovery, for self-actualization.

“[Self-actualizing people] live more in the real world of nature than in the human-made mass of concepts, abstractions, expectations, beliefs, and stereotypes that most people confuse with the real world.” ~ Abraham Maslow

When you rationalize, you may be fulfilling your desire for safety and control but you actually create a paradox: When you rationalize, you may feel better at the moment but you limit your growth by keeping your self and your thoughts within your comfort zone. Growth, however, lies outside of the comfort zone; and rational thinking keeps you there — it keeps you safe in the arms of mediocrity — rather than playing to win, you play “not to lose.”

To rationalize is to think to yourself or to say one of the following potentially self-defeating behaviors:

• People who are different than me in appearance, religion, geographic location, ideology, or culture are dangerous.
• The stock market has generally been a poor place to invest money
  over the past several years; and so it remains a poor place to invest.
• She’s smart for a [enter any identifying category or group that stereotypes and generalizes].
• I don’t know why I don’t like you but I’ll find a reason.
• Good things don’t happen to me.
• I’ve already made up my mind so don’t try to give me an alternative point of view.
• When I attempt something significant, I usually fail; therefore, if I don’t try anymore, I’ll save myself the heartbreak of failure.

If rationality is a natural human behavior, what might be done to limit its self-defeating potential?  The antidote to rationality is just what you may have already guessed — irrationality.

“I can see, and that is why I can be happy, in what you call the dark, but which to me is golden. I can see a God-made world, not a man-made world.” ~ Helen Keller

While we cannot escape the fact that humans are rational beings, we have something wonderful that many of the greatest, life-changing, world-impacting humans and events have emanated from. This wonderful thing is called the imagination — and it often lies outside the realm of rationality.

Certainly, however, imagination and irrationality can be potentially harmful. Where there is uncertainty, where there is darkness, your mind will fill the empty spaces with something that may or may not be there. Often, your emotions will color the picture of what your imagination sees.  Where there is darkness, why not see the possibilities rather than the impossibilities?

“If you can dream it, you can do it.” ~ Walt Disney

Perhaps the line that divides those who achieve greatness, and those who do not, is defined by the picture painted by the imagination. Uncertainty need not be the enemy — it can be your friend.

Without imagination, there would be no hope, no dreams, no vision from which the seemingly impossible becomes possible and therefore is given a chance to become reality.

On a historic scale, many who achieved greatness, such as Socrates, Gandhi, Jesus Christ, Christopher Columbus, Sir Isaac Newton, Nicolaus Copernicus, Ferdinand Magellan, Martin Luther King, Jr., Helen Keller, and Walt Disney would not first be considered rational people — they achieved greatness in spite of tremendous challenges and odds against them.

On a personal, more modern scale, the following might be considered “irrational:”

• The nun who shows compassion to the worst of human beings — death row prison inmates — because no one else will.
• The investor who buys stocks when the investor herd is fearful.
• The investor who sells stocks when the investor herd is greedy.
• The child who vows to end the suffering in Haiti by selling lemonade on a street corner.

Why do we laugh when a child says they want to aspire to something that seems unachievable?  The child has not “learned” to rationalize.  The child thinks beyond boundaries.  To a child, dreams and reality, play and work, the self and the world are the same.  There are no categories, no boundaries, no rations — no rationality.

“When we relinquish our need to constantly classify things as good or bad, right or wrong, then we experience more silence in our consciousness — our internal dialogue begins to quieten when we shed the burden of judgment.  It is important, therefore, to get away from definitions, labels, descriptions, interpretations, evaluations, analyses, and judgment; which all create the turbulence of our internal dialogue.” ~ Deepak Chopra

The human need for safety is directly related to the desire for control and the tendency to “rationalize” everything, which is to categorize and to look for (and find) patterns in everything, whether a real pattern exists or not.

If, rather, we let go of the desire for control, the need to define and categorize things, and embrace the unknown, we give ourselves greater capacity to grow — when we slowly and deliberately push ourselves beyond our own comfort zones.

“Before
the beginning of great brilliance, there must be chaos. Before a
brilliant person begins something great, they must look foolish in the
crowd.” ~ The I Ching

Growth and success lies beyond the comfort zone, beyond the crowd, beyond conventional thought, beyond the finite grasp of the brain, beyond rationality. What is defined as irrational by the crowd today may just be the most prudent path for your successful tomorrow…

Image by Ohh Shh Its Jon