Virtues of Stoicism: Wisdom (Good Sense)
By: Kody Taylor
Tags: Stoic Phiosophy, Mental Toughness, Stoicism, Stoic, Warriors

This is why common sense isn’t very common.

The Stoics knew the value of common sense. The four virtues (or pillars) of Stoicism are: wisdom, justice, courage, and temperance. Within the virtue of wisdom lies what the Stoics called “good sense” (or common sense in modern terms). Good sense is simply sound practical judgement that is usually developed through life experience. It tells us right from wrong and keeps us out of harms way. Good sense belongs to the larger character trait of wisdom. Philosophy literally means “a love of wisdom.” This means a philosopher is simply an individual who loves to learn and makes an effort to continuously learn something new every day. Seneca states that we should be actively applying wisdom to our lives, not merely learning it. There is a moment of time between our brains receiving stimulus from the body and choosing to react. That brief moment of time is where wisdom thrives. Wisdom is the factor that determines our reaction. Wisdom informs action. Ultimately, wisdom enables us to lead better lives. Now that we know the importance of wisdom, let’s examine the importance of good sense.

How do we develop good sense?

The Application of Good Sense

Applying your existing good sense to decisions you are faced with can be a good way to increase your good sense.

Compare Risk vs Reward:

Comparing risk versus reward is simply taking a look at potential positive and negative outcomes. This can either be done mentally in a matter of seconds or taking a few minutes (or days) to create Pro’s and Con’s list when time allows. An example of this is taking a moment to step back and brainstorming: A friend who would like you to go party with them on a Tuesday night, however you have an important exam early the next morning for school. What are the Pro’s and Con’s of going out to party? What are the Pro’s and Con’s of staying home and getting a good night’s sleep? Comparing risk versus reward is always a good way for us to strengthen our good sense. Trust Your Gut:

More often than not, your initial reaction to is one of good sense and reason; so long as you have a sound moral compass. Whenever faced with a decision, meditate on your initial instinct prior to answering. Following your initial “gut feeling” comes your mind which often implants mischievous thoughts in our heads. For example, imagine you are an employee at a business where you are regularly drug tested. A coworker invites you over to use an illegal drug with him. Your gut feeling will tell you no because you might lose your job if you get drug tested and illegal drugs are not good for you. Then your mind trickles in with it’s infamous “What If’s?” Now you’re debating jeopardizing your career for an hour or two of fun. Instead, meditate on your gut feeling and make good decisions. Use Different Perspectives:

It always seems easier to give advice than it is to follow it. Imagery is a powerful tool. Imagine seeing yourself from a different point of view. If you visualized yourself struggling with a decision, what advice would you give to yourself? Ultimately, if your decision is not the one you would suggest to yourself while using visualization (or one you would suggest to your family and friends) then it is not a wise decision. For example, if your brother is on a weight loss journey and is craving a high calorie piece of cake, you would likely advise against it as it goes against his weight loss goal. But if you were on a diet yourself, would you take your own advice and pass on the cake? Ask For Advice and Feedback:

In any aspect of life, it is important to have a mentor. A mentor needs to be someone who has more life experience than you and has your best interest at heart. If you dream of becoming a computer engineer, you are doing yourself a disservice by not having a professional mentor within the computer engineering field who has the expertise to help you get to where you want to go. However, refusing to obtain a mentor or refusing to ask for assistance is an issue of pride. Pride dims the light of our minds. Our ability to learn, build relationships, and maintain fluidity in life is severed by pride. If you reach a difficult decision, reach out to your mentor, family, or friends and explain the difficult decision you are facing. Talk through possible paths to a solution and lean on their experience. For example, we often find ourselves asking a parent about APR% when we buy a vehicle on our own for the first time. We do this because we know our parents have the experience of buying a vehicle and have our best interest at heart. Do Not Fear a Wrong Decision:

Everybody makes mistakes. Most have regret a decision at some point of time. As they saying goes, we learn more from mistakes and losses than we do from precision and wins. After all, precision was obtained through learning from mistakes. When you do make a bad decision, reflect on it and learn from it. Upon reflection, you are likely to make the correct decision in the future. For example, if your weather app says there is only a 20% chance of rain that day and you decide to not bring a jacket but get rained on, you are more likely to bring your jacket next time.

The Practice of Good Sense

Now that we have covered how to apply good sense to your daily life, let’s examine how the practice of good sense builds upon our wisdom.

Don’t Do Things You Know Are Bad For You:

This is the epitome of common sense, right? But then again, we know that common sense is not that common. Having good sense is making wise, educated decisions that provide you with the best outcome. Call it stubbornness if you want, but actively choosing to do things you know are bad for you will not build wisdom and displays a lack of good sense. For example, it is common knowledge that smoking cigarettes, excessively drinking alcohol, or spending more money than your budget allows are all bad decisions. However, millions do these very same things several times a day. This is why common sense is not that common. Observe Your Surroundings:

Situational awareness is a dying art in contemporary society. The biggest culprit is cell phone use. Anywhere you go nowadays, people have their eyes glued to their cell phones. Whether it be at the grocery store, a football game, the dog park, or even the vehicle driving next to you on the interstate, cell phone use is at an all time high. Due to this, people often fail to use situational awareness. Maybe they are glued to social media while crossing the street, maybe they fail to check their surroundings before exiting their car as they finish off their text message, or maybe they completely forget their purse while on a phone call with their spouse. Another factor is the erosion of physical communication. With so many people living in a virtual world, their ability to communicate effectively in person declines more and more every day. But how does all of this apply to good sense? Aside from walking into oncoming traffic while taking a selfie, it is paramount that we are fully aware of how people react to things we do or say. The majority of communication is actually non-verbal. You can compliment a coworker, but if you assume a posture of aggression or you look away from them as you compliment them, it is likely your intended message will be blurred somewhere along the way. Choose Practicality:

Again, we will inventory Pro’s and Con’s. Notice a trend here? This time we will be guided by Pro’s and Con’s to make the most practical and logical decision. When faced with a decision, the choice with the least amount of repercussions is often the most practical decision. For example, lets say you went grocery shopping yesterday and stocked up enough food for two weeks. Tonight, as you are hungry and looking at dinner options, the idea of eating out comes creeping into your mind. Now you have a decision to make: Do you make dinner at home with groceries you bought yesterday, or do you go out to eat? The practical choice would be to make dinner at home. It is more budget friendly and you already have everything you need at home. Yes, it might take a little more effort, but ultimately it is a more practical decision. Think Before You Speak (or Act):

This sounds like Stoicism in a nutshell! The definition of respect is to treat others how you would like to be treated. Prior to saying something offensive or harmful, imagine someone saying it to you. If you would not like it, then don’t say it! Most people understand this, but they allow their emotions to take control as their good sense is nowhere to be found. Stoicism is a solution! Next time someone calls your political views ignorant and treasonous on social media, take a step back, take a deep breath, and smile as you remind yourself that their opinion means nothing in your daily life. It only has value when you allow it to have value. Accept That There Are Things You Cannot Change:

This is also Stoicism in a nutshell! Everybody needs to understand that there are things you cannot change in life. You are always accountable to someone, you are not going to live forever, holding onto a grudge will never have the effect you are hoping for, yesterday is over and you cannot get it back, and you cannot change where you came from. These are facts of life that cannot be changed. Rather than allowing it plague your mind and rattle the chains of anxiety and depression, learn to accept it and be at peace. While this is much easier said than done, Stoicism is a solution. It is a path we walk every day that brings us inner peace and acceptance of things that we cannot change.

Now that we have covered good sense and how building good sense will help us build wisdom, we can become stronger in our Stoic journey. Good sense is full of wisdom we have heard our entire lives, but more often than not have found excuses as to why we shouldn’t apply it. As you continue to practice good sense and wisdom, I challenge you to eliminate one excuse every single day.