STOP THE BLAME GAME: UNDERSTANDING HANLON'S RAZOR!
While writing this newsletter, I am reminded of an old & popular Bollywood number:
‘Duniya re Duniya,
Very good, very good..
Duniya wale,
Very Bad, Very Bad….’
So, are you one of those who feel that everyone around falls into this ‘Very bad, Very bad’ category & are conspiring against you whenever something goes wrong?
Well, you are not alone!
A colleague missed an important email?
Oh, he did not on purpose!
Your co-workers failed to give a report on time?
They must be trying to derail your career so that you don’t get a promotion.
Wi-Fi in the nearby cafe not functioning?
The staff must be lying about it to lure you in & taste their espresso.
Suffered losses from a bad investment?
It’s all because of market manipulators!
This is how we all generally react.
According to Hanlon’s Razor, ‘never attribute to malice something which can be easily explained by stupidity.’
Understanding this will make us less judgmental & improve our relationships as well as our portfolios.
Let’s follow one golden rule: let’s give others the benefit of doubt & have more empathy.
If your wife didn’t take your call, maybe her phone was silent & not because you had a fight.
Similarly, if you didn’t make profit in crypto, maybe it’s because of your stupidity & greed and not because of some conspiracy.
In our lives as well as in investments, things may go wrong.
And when this happens, the most common reaction is to blame the nearest person & feel he or she has malicious intent.
But this is not the case.
Always remember, ‘harke jeetne wale ko baazigar kehte hai
Lekin har ke dusron ko blame karne wale ko sirf bewakoof kehte hai’.
By the way, what do you think?
Connect with me on my social media platforms (FB, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube) & share your views with me.
Warm Regards,
Mohit Beriwala