Gathering Data for Judgements About Yourself

We like to think that we use our imagination, but often our imagination uses us. This “dark side of the imagination” is the topic of a fantastic talk given by Jason Jaggard. The 20 minutes it takes to listen to it can be life changing. Allow me to whet your appetite with a powerful idea from the talk. 

We tend to view ourselves as objective observers of reality. We believe that we gather evidence and make reasonable conclusions. What we tend to ignore is that very often the reverse is true: we make conclusions first and then go on the hunt for evidence that supports our conclusions. We do this to feed our primal desire to be right. This mechanism is particularly sinister when it bears upon the judgments we make about ourselves. We say things like: 

• I’m a procrastinator. 

• I’m not a math person. 

• I am unattractive. 

Jason says, “Once you make a judgment about yourself, your brain goes to work gathering evidence to make sure that you are right.” These self-judgements are powerful, self-perpetuating forces that shape our lives and rob us of our full potential. Jason’s talk leads us to consider what would happen if we held our judgements with less certainty.

This week, I invite you to look at your judgements, asking: 

Where in my life have I judged myself? In what way have these judgments hindered me from flourishing? If I were to have the courage to let go of these judgements, what things beyond my current imagination might be waiting for me? What self-judgment am I willing to be wrong about?

God bless,
Dan