I once interrogated a young man why he doesn’t want to further his education after high school? And guess what he told me; “My uncle abroad has promised to come and take me to continue schooling in abroad. But for some time now, he refuses to answer our calls. I don’t know why he is behaving that way”.
I shook my head in pity and said to myself you need one antidote, thus; common sense.
You have wasted all these years looking up unto your uncle who has not only ceased to amaze you but frustrates you. Wise up man and take charge!
Common sense in us as individuals is one of the basic characteristics which affect the existence of common sense in all segments of life in our societies. It is also true that the existence of common sense in all segments of society affect the common sense in us as individuals. This statement may appear to be contradictory but in effect we are affected by the activities of those around us. Regardless, we are in control of how we think and react to situations created or taking place in the environment around us.
This write up suggests to us about the need to put common sense to work instead of enduring blame games.
Many individuals have failed in life not because a witch or wizard is after them but the failure to use common sense. Simply because its common does not mean it works just like that. You need to activate it.
I remember clearly how my English Teacher back at High school once told me after I failed to submit an essay writing assignment;
He said “Common sense tells me that you have a very bright future but the environment in which you find yourself may not be fair to you as you keep going against deadlines”.
I have never recovered from this statement made by this great mentor. I got inspired because he blankly made me know common sense exist.
I am pretty sure the heading for this write up appears dicey but the reality is that everyone at some point in life need to apply common sense.
Some argue that common sense is not common. But seriously let’s journey to explore the realities of this caption.
What is COMMON SENSE?
The first aspect to discuss is the definition of what common sense represents. Some of the actions we take as individuals to us may be considered common sense based on our understanding of the facts involved. This conclusion may not always agree with others perception of the issues involved in making the decision.
According to Merriam Webster, common sense is defined as “sound and prudent judgment based on a simple perception of the situation or facts”. This is a basic premise in making any decision that it be based on the facts and our understanding of them. There are many sources of definitions for this term, but they basically amount to one simple fact that they are based on sound judgment associated with our perception of the facts. We must remember that we are individuals with different character qualities. These can be or have been affected by the way in which we were raised by our parents. Our environment, with all the qualities and experiences we encounter in our daily lives, shape who we are. Common sense as an individual is something that not only affects society but it affects the relationship we have with our families and friends. In some ways, common sense relates to the principles of integrity in that sound decisions must be made based on all the facts for each situation. Making decisions involves judgment and making the right ones involves common sense. Sometimes we as individuals make decisions which sometimes appear to not be logical and may be questioned by others. To further explain our decisions which affect others appears to not have the characteristics of common sense as the decision does not make sense. Though there are times when decisions may appear to not make sense, but they are the right ones to make given the situation and the facts.
A good technical definition of common sense is “sound judgment not based on specialized knowledge .” In other words, you don’t need to be a Ph. D. to exercise common sense. It’s a trait you develop through purposeful awareness and habit.
Martin Luther King Jnr once said, “If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving”.
I agree with this great achiever on this assertion. Obviously there has to be a particular movement in once field of endeavor. You need to be found using your head to work.
The mind is the less used part of the human body by a research, yet it is the post powerful in performance. Show me a great hero and I will tell you how his or her mind works. Its simple! Your mind when used can bring glory and honor to generations yet unborn.
Pastor A. L. Fant wrote in his book, Common Sense Approach and said; “Mind power will take you further than man power. It is one thing to want more and entirely different thing to be worth more. Knowledge is priced than energy. That is why supervisors earn more than labourers even though laborers use more energy.”
Come to think of it; young singles who wants to get married but are seriously investing time and money into having an impressive wedding ceremony. Who do you want to impress?
The guy is not working yet the lady thinks their wedding must be ‘one in town’.
Some even go the extra mile of borrowing from financial institutions and bear the consequences after the supposed flashy wedding.
You are all salary earners! Good! Why don’t you rather invest in becoming your own CEOs by establishing a business for yourself.
You tell me people will laugh at you if you don’t do a wedding that is expensive, but what happens if they start chasing you to pay your Dept’s. Wise up folks!
You live in a rented apartment yet all your dream is to buy a car and still live in under someone’s roof. Don’t you think of building your own house? Common sense is all you need.
I know of a guy who has hopes of travelling to Canada yet he has no current birth certificate neither to talk of passport for travelling. Wise up. Common sense is all you need. One step at a time.
This reminds me of what Robert Green once said; “It is a thousand times better to have common sense without education than to have education without common sense”.
You need common sense.
Individuals who succeed greatly in business will let you know that common sense helps them in business.
You don’t hold on to archaic ways of business. You will fail. Study the market and develop your business along those lines. Some goods are outmoded on hence don’t bring them into your business. Employ professionals if the need be to teach you modern marketing principles to break through. You can make it without blaming that witch or demon. The demon may just be you. Apply commonsensical principles to make it.
Precious one, we live in a global world hence the need to be more responsible with all your actions in life. Don’t allow anyone to deceive you. I don’t underscore the fact that we don’t face some challenges as a result of the devil. But intrinsically, common sense is one of the solutions to look to out for.
Common sense will set the pace to set you different. You can get there so don’t stop at any point.
I believe in your future so keep moving.
See You At the Top!
Till my next write up, stay blessed and peaceful.
KAMPI LAARI ROBERT
Join GhanaStar.com to receive daily email alerts of breaking news in Ghana. GhanaStar.com is your source for all Ghana News. Get the latest Ghana news, breaking news, sports, politics, entertainment and more about Ghana, Africa and beyond.