This is related to something I occasionally think about.
I used to take a lot of pride in 'critical' thought. Certainly I frequently take this attitude toward the things floating around in my head, and I like that.
But I've learned not to do the same for ideas from others, especially in short comments on the internet, where it's basically a given that the other didn't fully express themselves anyway.
'critical' thought isn't all there is. 'constructive' thought is important too; maybe even more important. It's easy to be a critic and find 10 things wrong with another idea. It's harder, riskier, but more rewarding to then prioritize which of those 10 things should be worked out first and in what way.
If someone throws out a half baked idea. You can critique it. Most people stop there. But you can also continue forward and construct on top of it, propose changes, make it better.
I now try now to be not just critical but constructive in most parts of my life.
I used to take a lot of pride in 'critical' thought. Certainly I frequently take this attitude toward the things floating around in my head, and I like that.
But I've learned not to do the same for ideas from others, especially in short comments on the internet, where it's basically a given that the other didn't fully express themselves anyway.
'critical' thought isn't all there is. 'constructive' thought is important too; maybe even more important. It's easy to be a critic and find 10 things wrong with another idea. It's harder, riskier, but more rewarding to then prioritize which of those 10 things should be worked out first and in what way.
If someone throws out a half baked idea. You can critique it. Most people stop there. But you can also continue forward and construct on top of it, propose changes, make it better.
I now try now to be not just critical but constructive in most parts of my life.