I say senselessness because common sense is based on averages.

It assumes that what works for some people will work for others and that we all want similar outcomes in life.

What a load of baloney.

Common sense may be common, but there's nothing sensical about it.

For example…

Check out the following pieces of “common sense” which my digital sidekick ChatGPT churned out after I asked it for some examples of common sense life advice:

(with my thoughts added for each)

Maintain a strong work ethic and a commitment to excellence

Common sense?  Hardly.  A commitment to excellence is one of the very reasons that people don’t end up doing the things they want to do.  They set the bar too high.  Instead, I suggest committing to trying things out, being a beginner and falling flat on your face

Build and maintain positive relationships with others

What makes much more sense is to build and maintain a positive relationship with yourself by getting to know, and love, who you are.  And guess what?  This will naturally lead to positive relationships with others anyway

Set clear goals and make a plan to achieve them

Setting a 6 month goal and then sticking to a plan just because you have a goal and a plan does not, to me, seem like common sense.  What about the new information, new resources and changing wants & desires which will inevitably show up along the way?  Not to mention the flexibility and opportunities you miss out on by using goals and plans in the first place

Seek continuous learning and self-improvement

Aha!  These themes look familiar!  Am I about to shoot myself (and my daily emails) in my stripy sock-covered foot?  Well no.  Because what most people think of as self-improvement (e.g. buffing up the persona they present to the world, seeing changes in mood as problematic & trying to manage them, hunting for the latest tool or technique to “fix” themselves) is often the very thing which stops them from living a free, peaceful and happy life

And there’s nothing in the least bit sensical about that.

So common sense?

I’d take all so-called “common sense” with a supersized grain of salt and treat it with the scepticism it deserves.

Especially if someone else is trying to use it to bang you over the head with ("You can't do that - it's common sense!").

So any time you’re following the crowd or jumping on the common sense bandwagon, it’s worth taking a step back and asking…

“Does this feel right for me?”

That’s my take on all this.

What do you think?

That’s all for today.

– Tom