Most things in life require the ability to recall and the capacity for judgment. Everything, from ten seconds ago to ten hours ago, to ten days or ten years ago, requires some form of recall because everything cannot be put down on paper or a means of reference.
The human mind has been created in such a way that it works optimally when drawing on recall. Some minds are a little sharper than others, and some work better than others, and this is reflected in the abilities of people. The important thing to realise is that the ability to recall can be sharpened through various techniques and methods, and some would even have us believe that there are exercises to strengthen this.
The other trait, judgment, begins with a classical statement from the lead character in Shakespeare’s play Hamlet: “To be, or not to be, that is the question.” Hamlet had reportedly lost the full functioning of his mind after witnessing the killing of his father with the connivance of the people who would have stood up for his father’s defence.
The ghost of his father kept pursuing Hamlet to avenge his death. Hamlet recognised that ghost and set out in pursuit of things which he found not only obnoxious but also positively depraved. Yet to Hamlet, it made full sense; the rest is a matter of the story, which is not relevant to the theme here, but the classical dilemma of Hamlet shows how important judgment is to life itself.
Judgment is needed in everything, and listing the various aspects may help: What to say? When to say it? How to say it? How much to say? To whom to say it? At what level of completeness to say it? The list can be long. The above questions establish how judgment is necessary in matters both big and small.
Besides the fundamental questions listed above, there are nuances such as intonation, tone, and timing. The choice of words, inflection of the voice, and even the underlying causes may all be relevant and, together, define effectiveness. This cannot simply be taught; it can only be practised, and practised in a way where refinement builds upon itself.
Interestingly, this business of communication has received its virtual endorsement through the curricula of various universities and academic institutions. Communication has developed as a distinct subject area, and serious attempts have been made to analyse it and integrate it into an academic framework. To do so requires a craft — this craft involves research, training, development, and more. This craft follows the usual research pattern of doing more and more with less and less. The research rigour applied in a scholastic mode to communication has done the subject much good; however, by the same token, a lot still needs to be done.
The use of various parts of the body — such as the eyebrows, eyelashes, nostrils, lips, and cheeks — has led many authors not only to describe their power but also to read the meaning behind them. All told, the ground is ripe for looking at multiple layers of recall and sharpening it to get the nuances in context.
The present attempt to focus it almost literally on words, events, and actions has created a base, but it does not go far enough. Recall often takes on different shades of meaning because of context, and recall cannot be just of an event or activity but also the meaning of meaning itself.
The current state of mind travels to choose and relate the relevant information; this happens almost in a reflux mode, and it is difficult to break it up into components and analyse. It may not be necessary either. This reflexive action shows the quality and functioning of the mind in many ways.
Illustratively, the ability to associate and correlate is important, and the relationship of one thought to another highlights the flavour of uniqueness and the richness of the background.
A person with a rich background will see far more correlations than somebody whose experience is limited; therefore, their correlations are fewer and not as instantaneous when needed. Practice makes the whole system work far more competently, as per the requirements of the situation, and it is this which distinguishes one quality of the mind from another.
Somewhere, someday, it will be realised, more fully, that the quality of brain cells and their multiple layers also have specific functions. Some steps have already been taken in this direction, but the correlation between the physical brain and the conceptual brain will take more time to analyse and convert better into a fit topic for research.
That research, when meaningfully completed, will blend into its interpretation for operational purposes. Here is a rich area for research institutions to look into, as it will help determine the nature of learning.
The writer is an internationally acclaimed management consultant; views are personal
