It’s often not what we think.
We mostly feel we’re in touch with our reasons for doing and not doing things. Our belief likely is that there are logical thought processes behind our choices.
However, subconscious beliefs, emotions, and patterns can strongly contribute to our actions and decisions. Our motivations aren’t always what we think they are.
This is even more true when it comes to our assessments of others’ behavior. We’re guessing at their reasons for doing things, based on what we think they might be feeling and deciding.
The bottom line is that understanding motivation is tricky. Knowing why we do things may be useful. The same is not as true when it comes to others. We don’t so much need to understand their actions as to decide what, if anything, is our appropriate reaction to their behavior.
Today’s message advises that light-duty analysis of behavior may often be misguided. I may wish to internally examine my motivations if I behave atypically or dysfunctionally. I’m probably best-off leaving others to ruminate on their own actions.
Please reflect and share. Have you found your analysis of your own and others’ behavior to be helpful?