Do you know why your side might lose?
Mickey Mellen
Partner at GreenMellen | Website Developer | Speaker | Technology Enthusiast
At the time of publishing this post, the 2024 United States election is tomorrow and it’s very unclear who will win. I suspect that the losing side will be full of “how could that have possibly happened?” kinds of questions, and that’s not a good thing.
I know who I’m voting for, and I’m 100% pulling for that party to win, but I understand why people might vote for the other side. I don’t agree with them at all, but I understand what lead some people to make that decision.
A few years ago I shared a post about seeing things from both sides of the aisle , and that’s still something I try very hard to do. I also try hard to understand both sides to the degree that I could make solid argument for voting the other way. As Charlie Munger has said :
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“It’s bad to have an opinion you’re proud of if you can’t state the arguments for the other side better than your opponents. This is a great mental discipline.”
Ultimately, it’s all about perspective. Are you able to see things through the eyes of others, or not? In her book “Blind Spots “, Madeleine Van Heck says :
“If we truly cannot understand why or how others think or act in the way they do, then we, too, must have a blind spot: something is preventing us, at least at the moment, from grasping the perspective that differs from our own.”
I hope incredibly strongly that the election goes that way I voted, and I disagree with those that voted the other way, but I understand why they ultimately did and I hope that their ideals change for future elections. If you don’t understand it, that’s a blind spot that you should try to work on.
Chief Creative Officer and Head Writer at Writing World
2 周As always, your words are thought-provoking and helpful. I'm so glad you're still writing these posts. GREAT JOB. :)
Award-winning editorial/marketing/brand strategist + graphic designer
2 周The saying goes that a good attorney can win either side of a case. Same goes here. Educating yourself is always a good thing.
Founder and Strategist at Stand Marketing, LLC
2 周Mickey, I yearn for the kind of discussions you describe! Such positive thinking is rare these days because so many people vote on emotion rather than on facts and policies. How many voters are willing to take the time to study and understand the issues from a factual point of view? How many get their information from reliable sources (i.e., not social media)? How many have even a grade-school knowledge of history and economics? The answers to those questions are not encouraging.