Some beliefs are technically untrue, but still useful.
I tend to believe I can do anything if I really want to, and if I’m willing to fully invest myself in it.
This is almost certainly not true, as we’ve all got different latent strengths and weaknesses, and there are surely plenty of things that are beyond even my most enthusiastic and committed reach. But it’s arguably beneficial that I believe I can do anything (and act as if I believe it), because otherwise I might be tempted to lazily dismiss difficult undertakings as being beyond my capabilities, which would in turn mean less pursuit (and at times, accomplishment) of difficult goals.
Some beliefs are untrue, but seem true for a long time because they go unnoticed or unchallenged.
A long time ago, I believed relationships basically all looked the same: a man and a woman get together, have kids, and that’s how things work.
I believed this throughout my early childhood because I hadn’t been exposed (personally or via pop culture) to anything substantially diverging from that norm, and in the rare cases I was, these variations tended to be portrayed as unnatural deviations: things to be concerned about or criticized.
Eventually, different sorts of people and couplings were portrayed positively (or at least neutrally) on TV, and more people began to feel comfortable being themselves in public, with all that entails. These changes eventually reached even my medium-sized, US Midwestern town, and that led to my reassessing and overhauling these long-held, but (until that moment) unchallenged assumptions.
Some of my current beliefs fall into the category of “possibly true, but need more evidence,” like my suspicion that microplastics are connected to a slew of contemporary concerns, including low fertility and issues connected to persistent inflammation (like some autoimmune diseases).
There’s research that seems to support portions of this assertion, but other components are possibly the result of pareidolia-like pattern-seeking, and may be examples of monocausotaxophilia—a strong desire to find a singular cause for complex problems that actually have many causes.
Considering that I tenaciously cling to untrue-but-useful beliefs, and looking back at the portfolio of beliefs I’ve discarded (“seemed true, but I guess not”) over the years, it would be disingenuous of me (and intentionally self-deluding) to categorize this assumption as anything but freewheeling speculation at this point, lacking a more serious basis for my intuitions.
But I also think it’s okay to hold such beliefs, as long as I can also maintain a moderating level of epistemic humility about them: seeking support for my hunches, but also reminding myself of my inherent fallibility and remaining as open as possible to alternative explanations and realities.
Pursuing knowledge and understanding, then, but defining myself as someone who’s open and adaptable, not someone who’s right all the time—perhaps especially in regards to my worldview and the beliefs that shape it.
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(My new book is about growing older with purpose and intent, and grabbing a copy is a great way to support my work!)