For many years I struggled with the ideas of emotion and thought. I am, by nature, more emotional than most guys. And I do like to use the grey matter that I do have. Both characteristics have their good and bad points. Are emotions bad things? I don't think so, they are so human and the very essence of feeling. Should we try to control our emotions? There is a school of thought that we are responsible for our emotions (Rational Emotive Therapy), that only we can make ourselves happy or sad and the actions of others should have no effect on us emotionally. I reflected on this. When I smell a rose, do I choose to say "Wow! This smells wonderful"? Do I want to choose? Is choosing even necessary? Similarly, when someone says or does something nasty to me, should I choose whether to have an emotional reaction to it?
And then there is the matter of thinking. Or overthinking. I've realized that overthinking can be a bad thing. But the cure is worse than the disease and if I ever figure out that the key to happiness is turning off my brain then I will happily die unhappy, thank you very much. I don't think the path to wisdom for me is to become more like an airhead.
As some of you may know I am a professional poker player. One of the many lessons this wretched profession has taught me is that emotion severely impairs the ability to think rationally. In our world a player who loses the plot and gets emotional at the table is referred to as 'on tilt'. These people pay for the roof over my head and the food in my belly. Another key component of success is focus: the ability to play the next hand without agonizing or irrational exuberance over what happened last hand. When you are thinking about something else other than the matter at hand, it impairs your ability to think clearly. For me it's very simple: if I let my emotions and deep thoughts cloud my judgement I will be sleeping in a cardboard box at the end of the month.
I believe emotions are legitimate and we should not try to reign them in. Feel the emotion, think the thought, then act. Emotions and thoughts come and go, let them. Emotions are good and it's OK to feel the sting when someone says or does something nasty to you, or feel joy at the silliest of things. You can even reflect on it for a bit. Just remember that it's hard to feel, think, and act rationally, all at the same time.