Be Reasonable

                                                 BE REASONABLE

1. "Come on ,be reasonable", are the most commonly used words while discussing, arguing, negotiating  or in meetings  The basic premise being to bring the other person to agree to what one is saying or putting forward. It is used when all logic has failed and one wishes to end the discussion. But what happens when you become reasonable and agree to whatever is being put forward. It simply implies that, you also agree that there is no other way, no other alternative except the one being put forward. It is here, you stop thinking and trying to find a way to do things in a different way. If there is no disagreement, then there can be no progress because progress implies disagreement.

2. More often the term is used  to justify old ways of doing things, the way the things have always been done. If you keep doing things the way they have always been done then you will keep getting the same results. Most of us are very comfortable with continuity and do not wish to change it, as we are scared of getting different results and be reasonable is actually an attempt to go with the continuity. It is this continuity which will lead to complacency and hinder all progress.

3. Why things have become accepted the way they are? Is it because that way they are more effective or is it because the things are easy to do it as they form a habit and this allows a person to do things in a mechanical way rather than think about it and find a new better way to do things. Most of the time it is because we prefer to do things out of habit and in a routine way.

4. One does not have to do things as others are doing it or it is done this way only or it is the way others have taught you to do things. It is the best way for people, who wish to continue with the continuity and do not wish to waste time in thinking and trying to find a better way to do things. To change something, you have to change your actions and to change actions one has to change his thinking and the best way to change the thinking is to stop doing things out of habit in a routine way and this implies a break in continuity. The break can only come, if you disregard the premise of being reasonable.

5. When things are in continuity, being reasonable gets you reasonably good results and normally one is quite satisfied with it. It is when discontinuity exists or appears, then the premise of reasonableness does not get you the desired results. It is then, one starts looking at different ways to overcome the problem. But here also most of the time one tries to see how others have done it or are coping with this discontinuity. Again even in these circumstances one looks at the continuity. Discontinuities, are breaks in the normal accepted ways of doing things. We accept that the best practice even in these circumstances is the best practice that we have practiced in the past or what best practices others are following it. The basic premise being that the conditions are the same for us as they are for others. But unfortunately things do not remain the same. If they were to remain same then there can not be any progress and if the things do not remain the same then the logic of reasonableness does not hold good.

6. One can not change something one does not understand. To understand it you will have to come out of it and look at it from a completely different angle or perspective. Break it down into smaller pieces, the smallest you can make them and forget where they came from. Forget the original and then look at them with different arrangements, different combinations and new relationships. That way it will be easily to find new and better ways of doing things. After all “How do you eat a watermelon?” The best way would be one small bite at a time, bite small enough for one to chew it comfortably, rather than eating the whole in one go.

7. A reasonable model will create only reasonable results and if you want extraordinary results then you will first have to force your thinking to become unreasonable. If one keeps the same way one will get the same results, same answers. To get different results one will have to start thinking differently and to think differently one needs to avoid the trap of reasonableness. Being reasonable prevents and hinders progress. Being reasonable has three aspects, the reason of logic and common sense, the reason of explanation and the reason of fairness.

8.  We accept that the best practices for others are also best practices for us because we tend to believe that environmental or other conditions will remain the same for us as they were for others. But unfortunately this does not happen at all times. When it happens we get the same results and this reinforces our belief on the basis of reasonableness but unfortunately the conditions never remain the same but keep changing and it here the logic of being reasonable fails and we keep wondering as to what went wrong and why we did not get the desired results.

10. To be unreasonable you will have to accept that:-

         (a) There are other ways of doing things.

         (b) Reject the premise of continuity.

         © Break the habit of doing things out of habit.

        (d) Break the process into smaller parts, which you can handle easily and try to find new
             combinations, new arrangements and new beginning.                     

        (f)  Do not agree for the sake of agreeing but agree if it makes sense?
        (g)  Even if you agree, then still try to find another way in order to make the process or result
              better.