Filter Coffee #121

On Retrospection, Introspection & Circumspection

Thank you readers for the many insightful observations on loyalty.

• Chandu Misra from Kolkata says: “No discussion on loyalty is possible without a view on conflicted loyalties. Here is a perspective offered by E.M. Forster – ‘If I had to choose between betraying my country and betraying my friend, I hope I should have the guts to betray my country.’ John Galsworthy produced a play, ‘Loyalties’, on how all of us face up to conflicted loyalties in daily life.”

• Shereyar Vakil says: “I agree when you mention that loyalty is a two-way play. I served my company for 54 years as a loyal employee, and the company too was loyal to me. Today's generation is different. They would like to jump ship every two or three years, sometimes for a pittance. Once I asked a youngster why would you change jobs frequently. ‘Don’t you know that a rolling stone gathers no moss?’  to which he replied,  ‘but it collects a helluva good shine.’”

• Amish from Mumbai says: “The reference to friendship in this post reminds me of the story of Karan in Mahabharata, who was torn between his bloodline and loyalty to Duryodhana, yet took up arms against family and eventually died fighting for the side he picked.” 

• Tarun Kunzru says: “Can there be loyalty in commercial relationships? I would say, it's more trust, transparency, and shared responsibility rather than loyalty. It's almost irrational to be loyal in a commercial relationship. It's a wrong expectation to have.”

• Shahji Jacob recollects this story: “A king decided to throw his most loyal minister, for some mistake he did, to his ferocious dogs. The minister asked for some time before he was thrown to the dogs. In the interim, he fed the dogs well. It is said that when he was thrown into the pit, the king and his officials were surprised to see the dogs licking the minsters hand. Dogs are generally loyal, and it would be wrong to claim otherwise.”

There are some more comments, but for want of space I am unable to reproduce all of them. However, I thank each one of those readers for posting their comments.

💭 Introspection, retrospection, circumspection

All of us, in our daily life, might go back in time and recall an incident that we were involved in or that for which we were responsible. Our focus is on the past and recollection of how events unfolded and the consequences thereof. Is this focus only on events that involved us, or events that unfolded before us as strangers or bystanders? 

The answer lies in differentiating between recollection and retrospection. The former is a simple process of remembering something that occurred in the past, even if it did not concern you or involve you. Like an instance of road rage when you witnessed unruly scenes. This recollection may help you learn to steer clear of such situations if ever you find yourself in. 

Some years back, in Mumbai, a guy was constantly honking behind me and when he eventually overtook me, he swerved in front of me and stopped. He got out of the car and the usual questions followed: “Who taught you to drive? You think this is your father’s road?”. I locked the doors, kept quiet, and waited for public opinion to build up. In Mumbai, the other motorists, as expected, particularly the autorickshawallas, stepped up to say “Arre Bhai jaane do na”, meaning “let go, bro”. The other thing I have learnt is to feel the glare of eyes and not meet those eyes. It sort of frustrates the guy, but he moves on — though not before he has shown me the finger. It doesn’t bother me any more but, on the contrary, helps keep my ‘traffic moments’ under control. 

Retrospection involves an analysis of past events to see if something could have been avoided or handled better. A sense of regret seems to be the preponderant feature of retrospection. When we say “in retrospect, I feel”, it is usually about something unpleasant.

If someone should question “why a happy memory is not open for retrospection?”, I would say “No” as reliving or relishing a happy moment does not involve its analysis. That said, one should be conscious of the possibility of retrospecting on how a happy relationship subsequently turned sour and analysing the contributing factors. I would be interested in what my readers think.  

Let me turn to introspection. Essentially, it involves a person’s thoughts, emotions, and feelings.

He may also analyse them. Take the example of a person who is planning on giving an excuse and not attending an event hosted by his close friend. The person could then think a little deeper and decide not to give any excuse as that would make him dishonest, putting his integrity at stake and disappointing his friend. This decision puts him at peace with himself. Had he gone ahead and given the excuse, the consequences of that may have led him to retrospect ruefully.

Many times we introspect subconsciously without being aware of it. While the pros and cons of one’s past actions lead to retrospection, the pros and cons of the action one is about to take may lead to introspection. It is the conscious process by which an individual can evaluate the after-effects of his intended action. 

Can retrospection and introspection occur about the same set of circumstances? I think so. We often find ourselves in a situation where we have lent money to a friend, believing his need for money to be genuine, and when we see no signs of his returning it, we ponder over how you would broach the topic without risking a strained relationship or loss of a friend. We retrospect and analyse the circumstances which prompted you to lend, and now you introspect and deal with the feelings and emotions that may play out when you broach the topic of repaying the loan with your friend. I recommend for your reading, 🔗Filter Coffee #016, which discusses a similar topic.

Often, we might conclude that “hindsight” and “retrospection” are synonymous. But they are different in the sense that when you retrospect you simply look back at the past events and analyse them, but hindsight is when you realise it could have been avoided or handled better.

There is this concept of “hindsight bias” which could make a person say “I knew it all along”.

Interestingly, this bias is more pronounced when there has been a negative outcome than a positive outcome. Monday morning quarterbacks do this all the time. Recommend you read, if you haven’t, 🔗Filter Coffee #046 for more insight into this topic.

Similarly, can introspection and foresight by synonymous? It would appear not. Introspection leads to contemplation, questioning one own thoughts, and may involve soul-searching. Foresight is the ability to visualise scenarios before an event occurs. It is also being farsighted.

Can introspection lead to circumspection? Possible. If you are offered an opportunity to buy something in easy monthly instalments (EMI) you may introspect and consider the need for it and become circumspect or wary about getting into the deal that you fear may not be within your capacity. Circumspection is all about being careful and not taking risks. Consequently, prudence is at the heart of circumspection and so “don’t put all your eggs in one basket”.

“Look before you leap” is another representation of circumspection. Circum in Latin means around, and specere means to look. The proverb underscores the need to be careful of the risks and the consequences of your action. Your circumspection may prompt you to skip bungee jumping, or you may still do it after being sure of all the safety measures. A person who is circumspect by nature can be called overcautious or wary. If you ask such a person to drive a fast car he would decline, or if you asked him to sign a petition against the establishment, he would be wary of a backlash. Circumspection is not about being paranoid. There is no element of obsession or unfounded fear. The fear stems from the person’s own perception of the consequences that he imagines would ensue if he ventured into a deal or made some commitment.

Can a single instance involve all three viz., retrospection, introspection and circumspection? Appears strange, but it is a possibility. If I had a bad partnership experience, in retrospection I would analyse what went wrong and if I came across another opportunity to do business in partnership, I would introspect and if my introspection gives me some comfort I may still be wary and circumspection may influence my final decision whether to get into the partnership or junk it saying once bitten twice shy? Recommend this post on Partnership for your reading — Filter Coffee #023.

In the final analysis, all three processes are relevant depending on the circumstances. Like I said in my post on “Walls & Bridges” retrospection may help you see the wall you just erected, introspection may help you convert that into a bridge, and circumspection may help you accomplish that. Want to introspect on that?

Take care readers, circumspection is not all that bad given the spike in China.

A couple of one-liners:

A pond would tell you about introspection

if it wasn't so busy self-reflecting.

I broke up with my girlfriend after she told me she was a communist.

In retrospect, I should have seen all the red flags.

Ciao!