Thinking With yourself

Giving free reign to the mind does allow it to go anywhere. And at light speed. Or even faster: in an instant. Distance has no meaning. No conscious influence to affect the outcome. Just see where the arguments go. I’ve done this forever and have always found it fascinating and very enlightening.

Although I have done this mentally, I have written little down of the mental deliberations. The detail of the thoughts and the arguments come and then it may go, although the important points from these mental discussions with myself do go to affect my thinking and how I view life. Factual things cannot be altered as they are facts, but how I think about those things can change my personal view.

To mentally think an issue through, take it apart in my mind and reassemble it countless times does remove the constraints that would otherwise impose considerable limits on the outcome. Mental shuffling of ideas and thoughts and separating the waste creates no mess. There is a mental 'bin' where waste just goes. The mind gets tidied up.

Ultimately, after lengthy deliberation the argument is distilled out by vocalising the issue. This forms a summary as all the non-essential information can be safely forgotten.

This information was important to arrive at the outcome, but can then be abandoned.

Rather like dreams and sleep: the mind loses non-essential information - the sensory information from the recent wakeful period that is no longer important. Once we have gone beyond an immediate threat (a traffic condition perhaps) it is no longer important. It is in the past and is no longer critical for survival - forget it.

Unless, of course, there is something to be learned from it. Then it is remembered.