Other Peoples Opinions

Home
>
Attraction
>
Other Peoples Opinions

In a society where interaction is part of everyday life, and other people form a vital part of life, other people's opinions are actually important in where we fit into society. However, we often think we know what other people are thinking and base our actions around those 'apparent' opinions.

Yet how do we actually know whether our assumptions about other people's opinions are true or not? Frankly, we don't. This is where the Fundamental Attribution Error comes in. To put it into plain Engligh, it means that we make a basic error in assuming other people's thoughts without checking or otherwise knowing whether we are right or not in that assumption.

We base these assumptions on our schema of the world (another Psychology term which means a system of beliefs we have about how the world works from how to order food in a restaurant to how we 'should' live our lives). These schema are made up from our experiences in the world, with some schema being made up from other people's schema which we have picked up along the way: such as our parents' and friends' schemas.

Now mostly, these errors are fairly harmless: it is when we start living our lives entirely around what we think other people are thinking that it can become 'dangerous'. Many people fall into the trap of becoming practically obsessive about what other people are thinking of how we behave that everything that we do becomes subject to what we think other people are thinking.

So how do you stop being like that? First thing to do is to recognise when you are making these assumptions and when they are patently false, and put some kind of system in place to prevent yourself from getting caught up in the negative cycle. One useful technique is the Emotional Release technique taught in the Sedona Method where you can quicly overcome the obsessive nature that can sometimes come from the error. Another way is to understand why you have the schemas you do and to change them: often they are out of date and are not actually helpful (as they are supposed to be). They are also linked to the 'gremlins' (if you're British you might know the term from the recent spate of adverts on TV advertising education) - but that's a future article. Fundamentally though, to overcome harmful errors, it is all about understanding when you make them and stopping them spiral out of control.

Charlotte Burton is a Licensed Career Coach & Psychometric Assessor. For more information and to sign up for the ezine, view the website at http://www.lifeisvital.com or email charlotte@lifeisvital.com to request your complimentary consultation.

In The News:

Yahoo! News: Top Stories

Geithner likely treasury pick; Clinton 'on track' (AP)

AP - President-elect Barack Obama is likely to name Timothy Geithner, president of the New York Federal Reserve, as Treasury Secretary in a time of intense economic turmoil as he rounds out the upper echelon of his Cabinet, a senior Democratic official familiar with the deliberations said Friday.

Dow ends up nearly 500 on Geithner treasury report (AP)

AP - Wall Street staged a surprising comeback Friday, with the major indexes jumping more than 5 percent and the Dow Jones industrials surging nearly 500 points in a late afternoon rally, ending another volatile week that saw stocks reach six-year lows.

Neb. lawmakers OK age limit for safe-haven law (AP)

AP - Gov. Dave Heineman signed into law Friday a bill adding a 30-day age limit to a safe-haven law that allowed 35 children including teenagers as old as 17 to be abandoned at state hospitals. The law, approved hours earlier by the Legislature in a 45-3 vote, goes into effect Saturday, and makes Nebraska the 14th state with a 30-day age cap. It had been the only state with a safe-haven law without an age limit.

Iraqi Shiites burn Bush effigy in anti-US protest (AP)

AP - Chanting "no to America," supporters of a radical Shiite cleric burned an effigy of President George W. Bush Friday in a protest demanding parliament scuttle a U.S.-Iraqi security pact and American troops begin withdrawing from Iraq immediately.

Air patrols, cameras to watch big inaugural crowd (AP)

AP - Law enforcement officials bracing for the largest crowds in inaugural history are preparing far-reaching security thousands of video cameras, sharpshooters, air patrols to safeguard President-elect Barack Obama's swearing-in.

Florida teen commits suicide in front of webcam (AP)

AP - A South Florida college student killed himself by overdosing on drugs in front of a live online audience as some computer users egged him on, some debated his method, and others tried to talk him out of it.

Prosecutor who had Cheney indicted yells at judge (AP)

AP - A county prosecutor who brought indictments this week against Vice President Dick Cheney and others pounded his fist and shouted at the judge Friday during a routine hearing. Willacy County District Attorney Juan Angel Guerra asked Presiding Judge Manuel Banales to recuse himself from the case, which alleges abuse at federally run prisons.

Lavish 1,800 year-old bronze chariot unearthed in Bulgaria (AP)

AP - Archaeologists have unearthed an elaborately decorated 1,800-year-old chariot sheathed in bronze at an ancient Thracian tomb in southeastern Bulgaria, the head of the excavation said Friday. "The lavishly ornamented four-wheel chariot dates back to the end of the second century A.D.," Veselin Ignatov told The Associated Press in a telephone interview from the site, near the southeastern village of Karanovo.

Neb. police arrest 'Butt Bandit' vandalism suspect (AP)

AP - Authorities said they've arrested a suspect in the rash of so-called "Butt Bandit" vandalism cases. County Attorney Eric Scott said a 35-year-old man was arrested early Wednesday morning. Formal charges have not yet been filed. Some vandal had been skipping from one building to another at night, pressing his naked buttocks, groin or both on windows.

Warriors swap Harrington for Knicks' Crawford (AP)

AP - The Golden State Warriors traded disgruntled forward Al Harrington to the Knicks for guard Jamal Crawford on Friday in a swap that addresses both the Warriors' injury problems and New York's salary cap concerns. "I drafted Al back in 1998, and I think his talents are a great fit for our style of play," Knicks president Donnie Walsh said in announcing the deal in a statement. "This trade also gives us more long-term flexibility while enabling us to remain competitive this season."

Geithner reportedly picked for Treasury; Clinton still in talks (Reuters)

Reuters - President-elect Barack Obama has selected Timothy Geithner as Treasury secretary, charging the respected head of the New York Federal Reserve with pulling the United States out of an economic nosedive, NBC news reported on Friday.

Bailout debate simmers as GM pares output (Reuters)

Reuters - Detroit automakers began work on the turnaround plans demanded by Congress in return for a possible $25 billion rescue as General Motors Corp said it will cut production more deeply and drop two of its controversial corporate jets.

Citigroup shares drop; CEO plans to keep Smith Barney (Reuters)

Reuters - Citigroup Inc Chief Executive Vikram Pandit tried to downplay speculation the banking giant might sell major businesses to restore its health and investor confidence, but shares still tumbled for a fifth straight day.

U.S. seeks Afghan troop increase before elections (Reuters)

Reuters - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said on Friday he expected to move five combat brigades into Afghanistan next year and wanted at least some of them in place before the country's election next fall, stressing this was a top priority.

Bush takes financial reform agenda to APEC forum (Reuters)

Reuters - George W. Bush headed on Friday to an Asia-Pacific summit aiming to seek support for global financial reform and hold talks on ending North Korea's nuclear program as his presidency winds down.

Iran rejects U.S. reports it has basis for atom bomb (Reuters)

Reuters - Iran rejected Friday U.S. reports it had enriched enough uranium to make an atom bomb, saying this would require steps it had ruled out like ejecting U.N. inspectors and leaving the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline on fire after attack: TV (Reuters)

Reuters - Unknown assailants launched an attack on the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline between Iraq and Turkey on Friday, triggering a large fire, broadcaster CNN Turk reported.

Bush signs law extending unemployment insurance (Reuters)

Reuters - President George W. Bush on Friday signed into law an extension of unemployment benefits, the White House said.

Bush bows out, China assertive at APEC summit (AFP)

AFP - US President George W. Bush began Friday his last scheduled foreign trip, meeting the leader of increasingly important China ahead of a summit aimed at containing a spiraling financial crisis.

Congo demands stronger mandate for UN troops (AFP)

AFP - Congo demanded a stronger mandate for UN troops in the conflict-torn east Friday, while residents of a squalid refugee camp said government soldiers killed a woman during a looting spree.

Other Peoples Opinions

Attraction Attraction