Logic does not have much of a voice when it comes to our
emotions and behavior. Logic can reinforce an emotion or a behavior already in
place, but it rarely changes their direction.
Think about smoking. We’ve known for quite some time it is
really bad for us and causes numerous lung maladies over time. But it is often
the now-taboo social stigma, the embarrassment of stained teeth and nasty
breath and the discomfort of standing outside in the freezing cold to enjoy a
few puffs from a cancer stick that get people to quit. Or it is the increasingly
painful monetary cost that triggers someone to give up the habit. The emotions
attached to all those experiences are often far stronger than the logic of
long-term health problems.
You can give someone all the reasons, stats, charts, and
graphs for eating a better diet, being on a budget, waking up earlier, spending
less time on social media, going to the gym, finishing college, reading more, shaking
babies less, etc. But without compelling emotions, behavioral change does not
last long.
So, how do we get our emotions to line up with the logic?
Behavior. That’s right, we have it all backwards. We have tried to use logic
and reason to influence our emotions so we can then change our behavior, but
that rarely works.
Logic often cannot change emotions, but actions will. Call
it what you will. Fake it till you make it. Act the part. But sometimes we need
to engage the right behaviors first, then emotions follow and finally logic
reinforces the path we are already on. Once we get the ball rolling, the cycle
reinforces itself.
But it requires behavior as a jumpstart. Action is the
catalyst.
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