Reflecting on 2016
A lot of things happened this year. Internship, CS3216 and Donald Trump.
But more importantly for me, I have started to understand myself on a deeper level. I like debating with others, because I always manage to “win” the argument. I “win” because I defined winning as giving me satisfaction. So during the debate, it was never about picking the “right” side, but about picking the “fun” side, the side that gives you most satisfaction.
Where is the fun if everyone agrees with the progressive mainstream media? It would be everyone nodding heads and continue discussing mundane things. However, if you are able to choose an unfavourable side and substantiate your claims based on some justifiable value system, no matter how farfetched, it is more fun. At least for youself.
It looked pretty great as a source of fun, until we concern ourselves with other people’s feelings. While initially it might be a pleasant thought-provoking experience for the other parties in the discussion, things changes gradually. As the pattern repeats, people will get tired and frustrated with arguing with you. They are trying to make a point, while you are just selfishly gaining satisfaction. I realized this is a serious problem and I wish to address this in 2017, to make myself a better person for others.
Plan for 2017
I will engage in fewer discussions and avoid confrontations as far as possible.
In the case of a discussion, I will consider the effects of my actions and words beforehand, whether it is driven by self-interest to gain satisfaction, or genuine intent to contribute to a meaningful discussion. If it is the first case, I will not proceed further.
Set. And let’s go.
Cover image (Three Spheres II, 1946, M.C. Escher) from https://www.flickr.com/photos/austinaronoff/12325690583 released under C.C 2.0.