In the original Star Trek series, there is a character, Mr. Spock, who always thinks and acts logically. The rest of the Enterprise crew is composed of individuals who base their thinking and actions mostly on emotion. This makes for some interesting TV plots. But reality is different. People have complex minds that should work both ways, balancing emotion and intuition with logic.
Regrettably, learning to think logically does not come easily for many people. “Common sense” is not all that common anymore. It’s rarely taught in school, and influences such as social media tend to encourage emotional outbursts without thought for the consequences.
As a conscientious parent, you are the one best qualified to teach your child the skill of logical thinking. This will provide your child with many advantages throughout life:
1. Your child will have the ability to comprehend cause and effect, and thus make better decisions. Your child will be better able to resist temptations and negative peer pressure.
2. Your child will become good at problem-solving by identifying and evaluating different alternatives. Later in life this will enable your child to deal quickly with unexpected situations such as a car breakdown or a plugged toilet.
3. Your child will gain the ability to recognize and challenge marketing ploys. For instance, when an ad says, “happy people buy our product,” it really means, “if you want to be happy, you have to buy our product.” Can you and your child recognize this kind of circular logic?
4. Your child will have the capacity to see through the tactics of politicians and biased media. Suppose a news reporter broadcasts interviews with four people who all express support for a controversial piece of legislation. The reporter concludes that the majority of people in the area are in favor of the bill. The issue is that the reporter is generalizing from a sample group that is far too small, and may be pushing a political agenda.
5. Your child will have the ability to evaluate what is said by considering the qualifications and motives of the person who stated it. For example, if your dentist advises you to brush your teeth more often, that is probably counsel you should follow. But the dentist’s advice on repairing your car might be taken less seriously. And a dentist who encourages you to buy expensive dental jewelry is just trying to get more money out of you.
6. Your child will have a better understanding of how computers work. Learning how to program a computer is a great way for a child to grasp the concept of logical sequences and outcomes. If A, then B, otherwise C.
7. Your child will be able to set goals and achieve them by outlining the logical steps necessary. This practice will greatly increase the child’s likelihood of success in life.
The greater your child’s ability to balance logic with intuition and emotion, the more productive and meaningful that child’s life will be.
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