Contents
Hello dear readers! Today we will study the deductive method of thinking, as it helps to draw competent and correct conclusions based on proven sources and facts. And for those who want to achieve success, this is very useful, if only because with its help it becomes possible to think through their actions, anticipating events and being several steps ahead of the rest, and also gives an understanding of the actions and motives of others.
What is deduction?
The famous and beloved Sherlock Holmes used the deductive method, plunging him into shock at times with his insight and attentiveness. But is it so difficult to learn to think like him? Not at all, especially if you understand the principle of this method. And it consists in the fact that it initially begins with a hypothesis that a person considers true and correct, and checks it with the help of observation. Usually any conclusion, following the laws of logic, is formed from the general to the particular.
In order not to confuse you, I will give an example, then it will become clearer: All living things have their finiteness, a person is alive, respectively, people die. Most often, syllogisms are used in deduction, that is, when there are several judgments and on their basis a new judgment is introduced, which is called a conclusion. It can be categorical: “Womanizer men are unfaithful husbands, my husband is a womanizer, which means he is cheating.” Or conditional: «If the deputies lie, we are disappointed in them, and, as you know, the deputies lie, therefore, we are disappointed in them.» And the last form is a disjunctive syllogism: «The boss is either a liar or stupid, but the boss is truthful, therefore, he is stupid.»
How to develop?
- First you need to learn to distinguish and delimit subjective thinking from objective. Because each of us has our own opinion, views, images, and so on, and sometimes, when meeting someone, associations arise in our head with this person, attributing some characteristics to him. I will give a simple example: A man did not come on a date, the idea immediately arose that he was a liar, a deceiver and generally a bad person. You must immediately delete his number, block and never communicate. This is subjective. But if you look into the situation, find out the opinions of other people in order to find out if it coincides with yours, then it becomes clear that in fact, on the way to you, he heard cries for help and rushed to save drowning children, whom he then took home to parents. Psychologists call this process reality testing. Therefore, every time you doubt your objectivity, try to discuss this issue with someone.
- It is also important to develop attentiveness, it is especially valuable to learn to notice details and nuances. And for this you need to train both voluntary and involuntary attention.
Voluntary attention is our focus
Remember, sometimes Sherlock Holmes seemed completely indifferent when he was told about some tragedy? He was stone-faced, sometimes not even looking at the interlocutor. And not because he does not know how to empathize, he simply concentrated and pushed his subjective assessments, emotions aside. Remember, in an article about time management I talked about various methods so as not to be distracted by different stimuli?
Well, for example, the «tomato» method. Start practicing, then you can, like Sherlock, automatically focus on the necessary things. It is believed that a person can be as focused as possible for about 20 minutes, but with the help of training it is quite possible to significantly increase this figure. Start right now by installing, for example, the Freedom program on your computer, it restricts access to social networks and mail for the time you specified.
Look for the so-called «entertaining tables», they randomly scattered numbers from 1 to 90, and you need to find each one in turn. If you practice daily, the result will not be long in coming. There are some exercises on this site.
Involuntary is passive and requires no effort
Simply put, it is a natural reaction to a stimulus that aroused interest. To develop it, you have to observe something familiar, while changing the background. For example, look around your office first in silence, then with pleasant music and unpleasant noise. The essence of the task is that over time you will be able to focus on the necessary details without falling out due to some external stimulus. Also, when on the street or in a public place, observe people, looking at minor details, trying to explain them logically to yourself. Check out the article on meditation for a great way to focus with a candle.
And that’s not all, by the way. Holmes achieved such colossal success thanks to the development of the ability of post-voluntary attention. That is, when some task becomes mundane, and the focus of attention is kept on the subject automatically. This is a very useful ability. Studies have been conducted that have shown that with post-voluntary attention, the psyche gets the opportunity to rest and unload.
This is because the brain does not need to spend energy on keeping focus on the task, and searching for its solution. To make it clearer, I will give an example: A first grade student makes every effort to complete his homework. Willpower has to stay at the table with uninteresting lessons instead of playing catch with friends. But over time, this process becomes a habit and becomes commonplace. And only in rare cases does he have to connect active attention.
Recommendations
- Expand your horizons. In order to learn the basics of deduction and begin to apply them successfully, it is very important that you be a comprehensively developed person. Agree, it will be difficult to make judgments without having general information. The secret of the great detectives was their inquisitiveness and curiosity. They devoted their free time to learning something new, improving their skills. I don’t know about you, but I certainly don’t remember a single scene where a detective spends his time watching pointless TV series while lying on the couch. If you read books, you will develop not only your horizons, but also your memory, imagination and thinking. Read more about the benefits in the article in this article.
- Solve puzzles, tasks, puzzles. This will help keep the brain in good shape, and, of course, will teach you to be creative in approaching difficulties. Just choose the direction that interests you. Can you solve math problems? Great, then stock up on textbooks in arithmetic or geometry. Do you like tasks that require logic and a non-standard approach? There are many tasks for beginner detectives with Inspector Varnicke, Ludovic, Poirot … There are even online games where you can fully get used to the role of a skeptical and observant investigator.
- Train your ability to recognize non-verbal expressions of other people’s emotions. This will give more food for their understanding, search for motives for actions and help to anticipate their actions. Learn more from the article «What is non-verbal communication and how to recognize the emotional state of a person.»
- Trust is very important in our life, it helps us to feel safe. But how to learn deduction if everything is taken on faith? You simply have to be critical of what is happening. After all, if you form your judgments on the basis of false information, they will be incorrect. Therefore, always compare how reliable what you are told is.
- Sometimes it is not always possible to keep a huge amount of information in your head, so be sure to keep a notebook in which you will write out your observations and conclusions. Trust me, there will come a time when you will need it.
Conclusion
The deductive method is useful not only for those who want to develop logical thinking, it is simply necessary for every person, regardless of profession and lifestyle. We all draw some conclusions, considering them true, but is it true if we think too subjectively or act in a rash way, guided by emotions? That’s all for today, see you soon.