Wednesday, March 3, 2010

When In Doubt, Pick C)

Urban myth? Retarded rumor to ruin random report cards? Who knows. But I am confident that all of you have heard of that saying some time throughout school. Some even go to say that B) is the new C) because the professors have caught on.

A multiple choice exam is usually preferred by people because it provides a SET of choices with ONE of them being correct. People can use different strategies to derive the right choice even if they have no clue what it actually is or means. Open ended, short answer exams destroy some people because they are left with many choices from the book and don't know which to pick. Work makes people panic because they have to choose an answer drawn from school and training combined. Life buries us because we have to act based on every single experience we've had up until the moment of a new choice. The reliable "when in doubt" choice becomes even less viable than it already is. Religious zealots will undoubtedly say in unison "when in doubt follow the bible." Basic instruction before leaving earth is just that, basic. The bible tells us WHAT we're supposed to do but does not say HOW. There are too many situations in life to encompass in such a thin book.

Whatever it is, school, work, or life, the best way to approach it is to know the theme. Everything we do, everything we learn has a theme. If we truly understand what something is SUPPOSED to be then all of our actions can gravitate towards that goal. You see, life has no right answers. Measuring the outcome of our choice is not a good way to measure the quality of our actions either. Too many random variables happen between our action and its outcome. In a G1 test, the best answer is always revolving around safety. In a work environment, generally, the best answer is always one that matches with the mission/vision statement. In life, the best answer is always revolving around your goal/calling.

Picking out the right answers isn't that hard. It's picking out the theme that's difficult.

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