Opinionated Garb: Common Sense

Imagine being in a situation that you have never been in before. It’s new to you, but to someone else it may be pretty practical. As a last line of defense, you rationalize by using your good sense and sound judgement to resolve the matter at hand. Per the dictionary that is what we call common sense – good sense and sound judgment in practical matters.

Common Sense is defined many ways. Here are a few other definitions:

• n. sound and prudent judgment based on a simple perception of the situation or facts
• n. sound practical judgment that is independent of specialized knowledge, training, or the like; normal native intelligence
• n. the basic level of practical knowledge and judgment that we all need to help us live in a reasonable and safe way

Let’s throw a wrench in your new accomplishment. Let’s say a conversation takes place and an individual expresses that you evaluated & resolved the situation incorrectly. You know that it’s your first time experiencing this situation, and nothing prepared you for this. However you handled it to the best of your ability, thus using what you thought was common sense. The individual expresses that it is just common sense to know the correct way of handling the situation. It’s kind of like a slap in the face. I mean this is all hypothetical, but I think you get my drift.

Common sense is not that common.

There had to be at least one moment in your life where a person told you that something was just common sense. No matter what the circumstance is, it can be troublesome to hear.

My personal takes on common sense is that it is all left to personal interpretation. These dictionary definitions don’t truly express what common sense is. Common sense is something that a person acquires over time. You didn’t know what 2+2 equaled until you were taught and now it is considered common sense. You didn’t know how to drive until you learned the rules of the road. Now you know it’s common sense to stay between the lines and use your turn signal before you get into another lane. The same applies for anything else. So if you don’t know, now you know. Common sense, right?

We as people acquire common sense as we experience life. It is measured on our personal experiences, teachings, upbringing, cultural backgrounds, and individuality.  Which is why I believe that common sense is based on personal experience and left up to personal interpretation.

Your version of common sense may not be the same as my common sense because common sense is really not that common.

Thank you for reading!