Choices, choices.

[metro.]

Yeah, I've been thinking too much, so I figured I'd put something into writing.

I don't know if it's just me, but in my young life, I have made quite a few mistakes. I fully admit to them...eventually, and attempt to learn from them. However, of late I've noticed a trend of seeing mistakes coming from a mile off, thinking to myself This is going to be a mistake, but I think it might be worth it and doing it anyways. Of late, I've had mixed results, but before this year it typically went well.

Regardless of my personal outcome, I'm curious of a few things.

• Do you repeat mistakes often? If so, is there a reason behind it, or do you just not realize it happening?
• What do you judge a situation by?

The second question is worded so poorly, I know it's going to cause some issues so allow me to explain to be best of my abilities, which really isn't that great at all.
When you are/were in a situation, what factors do you look at, and add up in some way to come out with a good or bad outcome? I suppose what I'm trying, and failing, to get at, is what makes you call something a "mistake", ranging from minor inconvenience to colossal failure?

God damn, I really need to get better at this.

[AceHigh]

• What do you judge a situation by?

How do you judge a situation?
What method do you use to judge a situation?
Which factors influence your judgement of a situation?


Feel free to use any of those if you deem them worded better.

As for me I use the mix of logic and intuition (subconscious deduction based on past experiences in life). My perception on things will cause a different outcome in a situation from another person even if we both use the same logic pattern. I believe that applies to most people.

[logos]

"fuck it, why not?" is pretty much my motto, so yes I repeat mistakes, whether I realize them or not rarely matters. 
And I generally judge situational things intuitively, but if I plan a choice I do so logically....then say "fuck it, why not?" and proceed to do something I probably shouldn't...
although I do reflect a lot on the larger mistakes I've made in life and I haven't yet repeated any of them.

[rostheferret]

Pretty much what Ace said for judging situations; past experience to relate to the situation at hand and intuition coupled with a large dose of logic. I know some people are more emotive and passionate than others, I'm fairly placid and coldly logical towards most situations. If someones upset I don't react with empathy so much as draw a logical conclusion as to how best to comfort them, which now I've mentioned it translates a little loosely to "I'm faking it to make you feel better." It also makes me make huge mistakes when outbursts seem illogical to me; I remember I once made my ex cry and had no idea what I said. All I know is that yelling "why the fuck are you crying" in the middle of the supermarket was not the smartest thing to do.

To that end, every situation I've been in collates as statistical data of reactions to my certain actions, and how best to deal with situations as they arise. As I garner more life experience I'm better capable of dealing with such situations. As for mistakes, that implies you regret actions taken in the past. I don't regret anything I've done, because I feel confident that given the same level of experience I would have acted in the exact same way. Sure, I've learnt how to better deal with situations, but now we're talking from a retrospective viewpoint. It's like asking if a fresh newly qualified electrician knows the trade as well as a 25 year old veteran; of course the kid freakin' doesn't. I suppose it boils down to how you define a "mistake." I could have dealt with situations better, sure, but it's easy to say that posthumously. I'm not going to beat myself up over an inability to deal with foreign situations and/or predict the future. The only real tragedy is if you fail to learn and better yourself as a result.

[JoonasTo]

I judge situations by the effort involved compared to the result gained. So it's a simple +/- equation. Don't really recall having done that many mistakes.

If you think this is going to be a mistake but it's going to be worth it, it isn't a mistake. You're only judging it for yourself and if you think it was worth it it was a success.

[Mistgun_Zero]

The same mistake which I do is hiding stuff from my parents. You know like when I get less marks and that sort of thing. I know they will eventually find out and get mad but I can't bring myself to tell it to them until later, mostly by the time it matter's not.

But I still know it's wrong, but still can't help myself. 

[Nikkoru]

I make flowcharts and mind maps if it's an important decision. Otherwise, I usually start second guessing myself. Remade my Neverwinter Nights 2 character 7 times yesterday, for instance.

It's not that I overthink my decisions, I simply have an ethos of doubt that I take pretty seriously.

[harpy]

I do repeat my mistakes and do it because I do think to much about others and I do try to help my friends. And that always bitchslaps me in the face. I do always promise myself not to do things like that again, but I always end up doing them again and again. I am getting better at not giving a damn about others thou.

The rest - well I need to loosen up and start making more mistakes again What kind of living it is if you have no nice mistakes to remember and regret?   

[metro.]

"fuck it, why not?" is pretty much my motto, so yes I repeat mistakes, whether I realize them or not rarely matters. 
And I generally judge situational things intuitively, but if I plan a choice I do so logically....then say "fuck it, why not?" and proceed to do something I probably shouldn't...
although I do reflect a lot on the larger mistakes I've made in life and I haven't yet repeated any of them.

This is a fantastic response. Honestly, just yes.

I'm really glad ros I'm not the only one that fakes emotions because you know it's the quickest way to come to a solution. Like... god damn I do not want to think about how many times I've done it. In completely terrible times too, like, you know, when you're supposed to feel something?

And yeah Ace, those are all probably better, but I have a big issue with modifying posts,especially if they're at the top of a topic. I'm petty.

Nikkoru, I would say that you over think things. It's all about breaking boundaries that you set for yourself. That's totally a good time

The rest - well I need to loosen up and start making more mistakes again What kind of living it is if you have no nice mistakes to remember and regret?   

Life is about making memories worth repressing.

[megido-rev.M]

Strangely enough, I'm usually correct (to meet an objective) on the first guess, but usually the second one would be way off (i.e. second guessing myself). Whether I take the dive for the second one comes from mixing intuition/judgment and slight bias for the risk factor (I get bored way too often).

So, as repeating mistakes, if I'm likely to remember it, why not.

[Ixarku]

Strangely enough, I'm usually correct (to meet an objective) on the first guess, but usually the second one would be way off (i.e. second guessing myself). Whether I take the dive for the second one comes from mixing intuition/judgment and slight bias for the risk factor (I get bored way too often).

This is actually pretty common, especially when it comes to taking tests.  I've always been advised (and this was reinforced by the instructor & the proctor at my recent certification exam) to not second-guess, as apparently statistically when people are unsure about a question they tend to get the correct answer the first time.
 

Me personally, when it comes to decision making, I hate being put on the spot and forced to make snap decisions, especially about anything of consequence or anything I haven't had time to give any serious thought to.  I'm not an impulsive person most of the time; I have to have time to think about the pros and cons of a decision.  I look at all of the facts I know, and try to make an educated guess about the things I may not know about, I weigh the probabilities of different events happening which would shape the results, and I look at the various outcomes to see what's most likely and most desirable.  If applicable, I also take into account my own feelings about the matter at hand -- does my instinct tell me something about the situation, how much do I want to go a certain way or not just because I'm in a bad mood or am in a risk-taking mood, etc.
 
So I have a very rational, measured approach to most decisions, but I will occasionally act impulsively too, especially if I can't make up my mind.  It's often better to make a decision impulsively and be wrong rather than to not make a decision at all.  Overthinking -- ie spending too much time making a decision, or giving undue weight to insignificant factors, or going over the same information over and over -- is definitely bad and to be avoided.  I'm pretty good at keeping the proper perspective on what factors are important and which ones aren't, but I am definitely a worrier and I have to really work to keep myself from stressing out over particularly daunting or discouraging problems.

[Saras]

I don't know if I can explain it clearly, but.

First thing first, I evaluate the worst possible outcome. If the worst possible outcome is fairly minor, aka a slap to the face, getting some bastard angry... etc. I'd say I would make decisions mostly based on subconscious intuition and a little bit of conscious thought to guide to a particular result I desire. Am I likely to repeat mistakes? Depends on two things, if the mistake in question was "fun" or whether I could avoid said mistake by making simple alterations to my previous approach. If either of these is a yes, I will try again.

If the worst possible outcome sucks hard. I will go by roughly 3:5/intuition:logic. I will allow my intuition to give me a foundation of possible moves and I will use my conscious knowledge and memory to analyse and eliminate invalid or unsatisfactory ones. I will choose the one which would bring me closest to a satisfactory "minimal loss outcome:best chance of success" even if the chance for a losing condition increases. I will never bet all I have on an outcome of 50:50. But I am willing to bet "non-crippling" amounts for 20:80. Though generally even thought I despise having to rely on luck, I am unlikely to go the risk nothing:gain nothing route either. What judges a satisfactory condition? The situation. I am usually unwilling to repeat serious mistakes and I tend to remember them quite vividly. However, if I believe the mistake to be an outcome of some "schoolboy error" and if I can minimize the total risk, I am likely to go after it again.

This generally summarizes my decision making process.

[megido-rev.M]

I instinctively aim for the best outcome, except that I have a dynamic quantification of what's 'best' at any given time.

[EmptyMemory]

As lame as this might sound, I heavily take my morals into account before I make a decision. The best outcome isn't as important to me.

However, if morality is not in question, then I use more logic than intuition.

[metro.]

As lame as this might sound, I heavily take my morals into account before I make a decision. The best outcome isn't as important to me.

However, if morality is not in question, then I use more logic than intuition.

You judge a situation and try to make the moral choice? My, my, that must be all laughs.

[EmptyMemory]

As lame as this might sound, I heavily take my morals into account before I make a decision. The best outcome isn't as important to me.

However, if morality is not in question, then I use more logic than intuition.

You judge a situation and try to make the moral choice? My, my, that must be all laughs.

Hey, you asked me how I made my decisions, and that's my honest answer. I don't recall condescension being a part of the deal.

[AceHigh]

In  my first post on this thread I made following statement:

My perception on things will cause a different outcome in a situation from another person even if we both use the same logic pattern. I believe that applies to most people.

Our morality - the sense of what is right and wrong heavily influences our general perspective on pretty much everything. Thus even when we apply logic when making decisions, our morality will play a role in the outcome of the decision. I will side with EmptyMemory here and from my own perspective, the laugh is on you, metro.

[Ixarku]

In  my first post on this thread I made following statement:

My perception on things will cause a different outcome in a situation from another person even if we both use the same logic pattern. I believe that applies to most people.

Our morality - the sense of what is right and wrong heavily influences our general perspective on pretty much everything. Thus even when we apply logic when making decisions, our morality will play a role in the outcome of the decision. I will side with EmptyMemory here and from my own perspective, the laugh is on you, metro.

Depends on the nature of the situation.  Metro hasn't really stated what kind of choices we're talking about in this thread.  The choice of whether or not to have sex with your best friend's drunk sister is probably going to follow a different thought process than the choice of what career do you want to pursue, or whether or not you want to get that rattling noise in your car engine looked at by mechanic.

[metro.]

I wasn't trying to come across... condescending is what you called it right?
The point I was trying to make was that making choices based on logic and intuition is difficult enough, and then you throw in a blinding moral compass that steers you...

Well in my experience I find that morality, being such a personally derived concept, typically makes decisions messy. Especially when you add in any kind of collaboration. But, if that came across poorly perhaps I should have just rolled with it.

And Ixarku, there is nothing different about any of those three choices. In my opinion, of course.

[EmptyMemory]

Aight, no big. I misunderstood.

And to an extent, I agree. It's late, so I'll elaborate later if I remember.