Kevin Cederstrom
Robert Anderson and Joe Kaiser both believe in the heart. On June 9 at the Great American Think-Off in New York Mills, the two will argue their points, present the best case, and the audience will decide which one will advance to the finals to debate against follow your head arguments.
The question - Which Should You Trust More: Your Head or Your Heart?
Anderson's essay centers on decision making.
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"Every day we make decisions; large and small, important and trivial, of lasting impact and of momentary consequence. We make these decisions based on several factors including logic and reason; otherwise known as the mind. However, humans are more than beings of intellect and reason, and our decisions are based on more than mere logic and cold calculation. The factors involved in our decision making that fall outside the realm of the mind include intuition, passion, and a sense of right and wrong. These factors are of the heart, the vital center and source of your being, emotions, and sensibilities. These latter factors are far more trustworthy than the former."
He continues: "With the exception of the very young, everyone has made at least one bad decision during his or her lifetime. An honest appraisal of every bad decision made in your life will reveal that each bad decision was made with your head in resistance to the cries of your heart. Whereas your rational side can only weigh the observable facts, your emotional side has the ability to see beyond what can be perceived with the five senses. Your heart understands things that cannot be explained or recognized by your mind."
Anderson goes on to argue in favor of making decisions with the heart.
"The question is, "Which should you trust more: your heart or your head?" To comprehend the question, we must understand why the question is being posed. The most obvious reason for this question to be contemplated is to help us make better decisions when our heart and our head are in conflict."
He concludes by saying: "Follow the 'right way.' Trust your heart."
Joe Kaiser is thrilled to be a finalist in the Great American Think-Off. A first time entrant, Kaiser had heard about the Think-Off for years and when this year's question was announced, called his friend Paul and suggested they both try and tackle it. In addition to being a fun writing exercise it would be a good excuse for some lively conversation over beers. The conversations were indeed lively and after a couple revisions, Joe sent in his essay.
Joe's excitement at being chosen a finalist was only magnified when he found out Paul is a finalist as well! Paul argues in favor of the head and will be featured in next week's Herald.
Kaiser writes: "The heart should be trusted more than the head because it is the home of our conscience, our moral compass pointing us in the direction of right over wrong. The heart is our most reliable source of truth. When we listen to our hearts, we know which way to go.
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"The only problem is that it is often difficult to hear our hearts over the din that is coming from our heads. Our head is like a friend who loves to hear himself talk. In love with the sound of his own voice, he chatters on endlessly making the same points over and over."
He continues: "The head makes decisions based on hard data; tactile facts, figures and observations that can be weighed, analyzed and judged. Unfortunately, there is more out there than the head is aware of. Our eyes, ears, mouth, nose and skin are extremely sensitive instruments. They pick up much more data than the logical head can process. The heart has an advantage. It has the ability to synthesize the information that the head misses. We say trust your gut, or listen to your heart. What we're acknowledging is that even when something doesn't make sense, our heart knows the answer."
Kaiser sums up his essay: "The heart craves silence. Truth is found in silence. When we turn down the volume of the head, we are able to notice beauty and feel peace."
(The finalists arguing in favor of trusting your head will be in next week's Herald.)
