Be Careful With Making Assumptions: Often They Lead To Wrong Conclusions.

I am reminded of a story that a famous preacher used during one of his sermons. His subject matter covered the point that assumptions often lead one to erroneous conclusions and why we should test our assumptions with facts.

The story was about a mother and her small daughter and how the daughter often observed how her mother worked in the family kitchen preparing food. The daughter observed over and over how her mother would always cut the ends off a roast and put it inside a pan before placing it in the oven.

In time the daughter grew up and started a family of her own. She loved to cook. One day her mother came to visit and she observed her daughter preparing a roast to cook for dinner. She saw her daughter cut the end off from the roast and place it in a pan before putting it in the oven. She asked her daughter “why did you cut the end off the roast before placing it in the pan?

The daughter replied, “because I always saw you remove the end of the roast before putting it in the pan and the oven.” The mother then explained to her…” baby the reason I always cut the end from the roast is that that was the only pan I had and couldn’t afford to buy another. The pan was too short to place the whole roast inside so I had to cut the end to make it fit so I could cook it.”

You see, the daughter, not knowing all of the facts, assumed that that was the way a roast should be cooked. Cut the end off before you cook it. This assumption had guided her roast cooking practice for years.

It’s easy to make assumptions. All you need is incomplete information about a situation. And an unwillingness to ask the questions you need to complete the information. In the absence of complete information, you have to fill in the blanks yourself.

You fill in the blanks with YOUR interpretation of what you see or hear. Your interpretation comes from past experiences that seem similar. It comes from your past experiences, and also from those you've heard about from others.

Armed with your information, you connect dots that aren't there. You can't help doing this You can’t help doing this because you’re missing relevant information. In trying to make sense of the situation, you make connections between today and the past. Connections that don’t exist. You jump to wrong conclusions.

Why Assumptions Should Be Avoided

They’re a cope out. They allow the easy way which usually is not the best way and they stifle growth.

• They stop you from taking responsibility for your life. Assumptions allow you to hide behind your version of the story. This means you don’t own your part in the true story. You prefer to blame others for your misfortune, rather than look in the mirr     
• They foster a negative mindset. Most assumptions are derived from old, painful information. This reinforces your innate negativity bias that dates back to prehistoric times. And keeps you thinking the world is a fundamentally hostile place.
• They keep you stuck in the past. Assumptions rely on old information to fill in blanks and connect dots. Instead of expanding your horizons, you retreat into the past. Into your painful past.

Looking back on my own life the decisions I’ve made based on assumptions have generally always been wrong. I doubt if I’m unique in this experience.

Likely, if you are truthful with yourself, you’ll reach the same conclusion.

Here’s The Good News!

We can change how we make decisions. Become conscious of your assumptions and question them. Make sure you take time to explore the facts surrounding your assumptions and then make a decision based upon facts.

Assumptions are like little termites that eat at the foundation of a building and ultimately if they are not removed, the whole building will be destroyed beyond repair.

As you move forward in life think of assumptions as “little termites” and be sure you exterminate them with a healthy dose of facts before making your decisions.