What is common sense anyway, and how do you spot it?

Today we discuss What is Common Sense? 

One gentler descriptor during our research was 'Common sense is a sound, practical judgment usually developed through life experience rather than any formal training. 

Here is another description 'Your common sense is your natural ability to make good judgments and to behave in a practical and sensible way'. And you might hear terms from other people like 'use your common sense or 'you know, that person always has common sense'. 

Developing Common Sense can seem like a tricky thing. But you can easily practice using common sense by being more aware and reflecting on situations before you make decisions. 

The problem is that we make assumptions about what is common sense or the other person's level of common sense. So we make a lot of assumptions about what is common sense.

Just think how much time, effort and energy is wasted, assuming that what we ask is common sense to the person we're asking it to.

 A few years ago, Nuala attended a presentation on common sense, and she had never forgotten the speaker's words when he said,

Common sense is only common when there is an agreed understanding that makes sense to everyone involved. 

We have adopted this stance. 

The question to you, our listeners and both of us is how do we have the conversation upfront to get an agreed understanding? 

And maybe it takes a bit of buy-in, a bit of debate, a bit of giving up some of my opinions and a bit of you giving up some of yours, maybe learning from you or vice versa so that we come out with an agreed understanding and move forward so that it makes sense to everyone. 

Consider when working in multicultural environments that what makes sense in one world or worldview doesn't always make any sense in another worldview. Therefore, what's common for one person and what's common for another person can be two completely different things.

And when we think of safety, we think of those complete misunderstandings, often misinterpretations and conflict unnecessarily, and the assumption that it is all just common sense. And the assumption that they would have done it the right way, the first time.

When we think of the words common sense, we can only base it on our past experience,  but we're living it in the present to change the future. 

Here are 8 tips that may help you understand Common Sense and how to spot it. 

1. Appreciate that people are different with come with a multitude of life experiences that may not match yours.
2. Make time to have the conversation upfront to get a mutual understanding, which may dramatically reduce conversational waste further down the line.
3. Check for jargon…develop agreed conversational rituals instead.
4. Is there a WIFM? (What's In it For Me) more efficient, safer, prior experience, etc.
5. Are you triggering the right response?
6. Match the message to the person.
7. Don't make assumptions.
8. Always ask the question… Based on what? Is the assumption based on what you perceive as common sense?

Remember this one thing; Common sense is not as common as we assume… it is only common to your life experience and possibly those who have had a similar life experience to you… and when we forget this, it can lead to frustration and disappointment.

Let's explore today's emotional gem - disappointment.