Rationalizing is something we do to bend our understanding of reality to fit our own needs and interests, and not to see reality as it really is; and it is a process that undermines the integrity of our beliefs.
Living successfully relies on a commitment to being honest with oneself and being able to prevent one’s actions and attitudes from being controlled by false, irrational, and misleading self-serving beliefs.
Rationalization, however, is a process with the power to weaken our ability to honestly communicate with ourselves and It causes us to see things the way we want or emotionally need to see them, instead of the way they really are.
When our emotions overly direct our understanding of situations, we end up with a dangerously self-serving and distorted view of things, and we lose our capacity to live rationally and effectively both with ourselves and with others. When our beliefs are based on rationalizations, we can no longer make rational and wise life-directing choices.
Getting Personal
What is the most glaring example of rationalization that you have experienced or observed, either in your own personal life or in current affairs?
“People who confuse what they wish were true with what is really true create distorted pictures of reality that make it impossible for them to make the best choices.” (Ray Dalio)
“There’s never been an act done since the beginning, from a kid stealing candy to a dictator committing genocide, that the person doing it didn’t think he was fully justified. That’s a mental trick called rationalizing, and it’s done the human race more harm than anything else you can name.” (Leigh Brackett)
“The human brain can protect us from seeing and feeling what it believes may be too uncomfortable for us to tolerate. It can lead us to deny, defend, minimize, or rationalize away something that doesn’t fit our worldview.” (Bandy X Lee)
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