Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Did you notice the poll?

Let's start off with something simple, seeing as this is the first "real" content on this site.

What would you rather have, one or two big problems or a bunch of little problems? Interpret this however you wish.

I myself am not sure. It would depend on what the problems were. I would rather have one big problem if it was fixable and would never bother me again after it was over (so in other words temporary). Having many small problems is just annoying. It really drives me crazy. But once you're done with whatever big project you made to remedy the big problem, you're completely done, where as having a bunch of small problems are a pain to track and kill.

However, if the small problems are temporary, but the big problem is not, then obviously, I would rather have the many small problems.

Writing this made me realize something. I only consider ultimate outcomes to be of importance. I do not care what happened in the past, unless it effects me right now, or it will affect me in some significant way at some point in the future (and according to my definition of a "significant change," this is very rare). It is important to note that significance [by my definition] is determined by time and ultimate outcomes.

So, in general, if something happened in the past, but it's over and not going to affect me, I consider the event to be of the lowest significance. I do not even bother myself with thinking of such things, as it is a waste of time. There are some exceptions, like if an important lesson may be derived from a previous experience, but it is generally easy to tell if this possibility could warrant any value to a past "isolated" event (by "isolated," I mean that this event has no real impact on other events, in other words it cannot influence the ultimate outcome of a significant thread of events). A rule of thumb is, how complex is the event? Does it involve multiple people, multiple ideas, and multiple variables? Of course though, a "rule of thumb" is always inferior to intelligent common sense. A rule of thumb is for people too lazy to think.

Anyway, please leave a comment, say what you think about what I said, and vote on the poll! Anyone can, whether you have an account or not, or whether you understand what I said or not! This survey ends when the month ends.

Good night, everyone.