For those of you concerned about my friendship with Stainless, we were able to get past that whole "God never wakes up thinking He's me" episode and remain very close friends to this day. Iron truly sharpens iron and, believe it or not, I'm not always on the receiving end. As a matter of fact, I once made a brilliant observation to him (about him) one day and he lovingly reminded me that he carries a weapon! But, that's another blog for another day.
Another occasion that comes to mind is one day when we were discussing the oft quoted and often misunderstood definition of insanity. You've all heard it. Albert Einstein gets credit for it, even though no evidence exists that ol Albert actually uttered it. The definition goes something like this: "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results."
It kinda makes sense, doesn't it? Truth is, I've been THERE. Whether you like it or not, you've probably been THERE. And even if we are unwilling to admit it, we can all certainly think of people in our lives who seem to be THERE. They just keep making the same mistakes time and time again, hoping against hope that the outcome will be different next time.
When this conversation occurred, Stainless threw me a complete curve ball. He actually postulated that Einstein's definition might be appropriate for most folks, but not for me. You see, I was right in the middle of it. I was making the same mistake, over and over and over. He backed me into a corner. Then, he forever altered my definition of insanity.
Stainless actually questioned Einstein's brilliance! He said something to the effect of, "Kevin, I know you've heard that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over gain expecting different results. But that's not REALLY insane. As a matter of fact, expecting, wishing, desiring, or hoping for a different result is actually kind of healthy thinking. But you sir, are doing the same thing over and over again, knowing PERFECTLY WELL, what the results are going to be! That my friend is INSANE!" (Actually, he didn't say PERFECTLY! But I run a G-Rated Blog)
WHAT? I get a different definition than everyone else? Apparently, I do. And friends, I am not the Lone Ranger! The traditional definition may be okay! It might serve as acceptable psycho babble coming from a shrink that's getting $100 an hour. But, let's get real! Making the same mistake day after day after day, while in our heart of hearts knowing "perfectly" well that we are going to get the same negative results that we always get is just a little stupid, a little crazy, and a lot INSANE.
1 comment :
I was working on the ambulance one day and we had a hispanic female patient who couldn't speak english. My partner, Greg, kept asking her the same questions over and over (in english). I finally said, "Greg, she doesn't understand english". So, Greg then starts yelling... those same questions, over and over. So I just looked at him and said, "Greg, she doesn't understand LOUD english either". Sometimes we think we can do the same thing in a different way, maybe louder or longer or while wearing a silly hat, and it will create a different result. The point is, the same thing, even if it's done differently, is still the same thing. For me it's a control issue. I want to do things my way while the rest of the world complies. When it doesn't, I might disguise the presentation, but it's still my way. A monkey in a tuxedo, is still just a monkey. My truth is, when I do things my way, it's generally like trying to polish a turd... it just doesn't work. But of course, it would be easier to put socks on a rooster, than it would be to get me to change.
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