Logic vs emotion is an old debate. It is what you think vs what you feel. Logic and emotion are our everyday challenges in decision making. It creates tensions within us.
And we make choices based on our logic or emotion.
We make countless decisions every day. Such as; whether to sit on the sofa or chair. Even decisions like asking someone to marry, or Accepting a job offer.
These choices may seem small, but they are making our destinies.
Logic VS Emotion
Each time you make a choice, your left-brain battles with your right brain. The left-side tells you to act logically. While your right-side fights and makes you follow your heart's content.
For example, you intend to purchase a car. You are thinking to buy it if it’s fuel-efficient. You are concerned about its space and safety measures.
Suddenly, your eye catches a beautiful car with a pretty color. You have never seen a car this beautiful. Your heart skips a beat.
And your priorities are gone. All you want is that car. This a prime example of emotional thinking vs logical thinking.
Logical thinking vs emotional thinking
What is logical thinking?
You can think in an orderly manner and base your thoughts on facts and evidence.
Logical thinking means you put logic into your thinking process. Whenever you analyze a problem or come up with a solution.
What is emotional thinking?
You can think emotionally. You make decisions based on what your feelings are telling you.
Strong emotions tend to interfere with your thoughts and views of situations and relationships.
Emotional thinkers vs logical thinkers
If you are a logical thinker, you make your decisions based on data, evidence, and Logical thoughts. You are not easily affected by your emotions.
Whereas, if you are an emotional thinker, you make your decisions based on values and emotions.
You often ‘feel’ situations, so you take notice of the less obvious subtle issues.
Logical types
- Fair and rational
- Have an interest in logical analysis
- Make decisions based on logic and facts
- Value truth
Emotional types
- Caring, warm and emotional
- Are interested in people and feelings
- Make decisions based on their heart
- Can feel how others are feeling
- Value feelings and diplomacy
Logical mind vs emotional mind
Your mind is of three states; the Logical mind, the emotional mind, and the wise mind.
Logical mind: you use your Logical mind when you approach a situation cleverly. Your Logical mind makes the decisions on facts.
Wise mind: this helps create a balance between logic and emotional halves. Your wise mind helps you to recognize and respect your feelings. While sensibly acting on them.
Emotional mind: the emotional mind is being used when your feelings control your thoughts and behavior. You might act aimlessly without thinking of the outcome.
How to be more logical than emotional
You might be stuck between how to think logically and not emotionally. Making a choice based on either is useful. Your wrong choice might cause you a problem.
To solve problems, your problem-solving skills come in hand.
Below are the 8 steps that can help you think more logically;
1- Work your brain with logic puzzles or games;
The winning solution with mind games, such as chess or Sudoku, is to work the problem backward. And not forward.
The same strategy can apply to real thinking situations. Practicing these types of games helps build up your brain muscle.
And develop new problem-solving techniques.
2- Try to get a good night’s sleep;
Getting the Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep improves your creative process in the brain.
REM sleep helps stimulate your brain networks. And allowing it to make bonds between ideas.
3- Workout with music;
Working out with music may improve your verbal fluency.
One of the studies showed that working out with music stimulates the intellectual mind.
And it helps to organize the intellectual output.
4- Have an idea journal;
Keeping an idea journal helps to record important thoughts. And write about personal experiences.
Work out problems by writing down your thoughts on paper. And then view it for solutions.
This is much easier than having all your thoughts stuck in your head.
5- Do Yoga;
Yoga is one of the most effective methods to help relax your mind. Yoga provides body-conscious, breathing, and meditation.
It shows to raise mental test scores.
6- Use Mind Maps;
Using mind maps helps to visualize a problem. Mind maps are the visual shot of a problem and its solutions.
It helps you to focus the mind, stimulate your brain. And increase the capacity for creative thinking.
And it also allows you to build more ideas for solutions.
You can make a Mind Map by drawing your problem as a center. And adding main branches made up of all the reasons for the problem.
The next step is to make a final Mind Map. It consists of all the possible solutions to your central problem.
Add the main branch that shows your solutions or ideas to the problem. Then make a final branch made up of a suitable solution for the main problem.
7- Create a psychological distance;
Psychological distance is having a mental space between you and your problem. It helps in increasing the creative solutions.
This happens due to the general thinking that helps you form sudden bonds between unrelated concepts.
8- Indulge in Some Soccer;
Soccer is a sport that requires brains full attention. When in action, your brain is multitasking between moving, analyzing, reacting, and performing.
Doing all these at once requires full brain activity.
The same thing is related when you are working or planning. Thus, playing soccer helps in getting your brain to be quicker at thinking, processing. And reacting to problems.
These 8 steps can help you gain logical decision making rather than emotional thinking.
Love VS Logic
Love and logic may seem very different, and yes, they are very different. Love is not logical. With love, the smallest actions can have the deepest impact.
Love makes you act without question. And fight without request and give without return. But logic is facts and purposeful. Do you love, if you love in an orderly and purposeful manner?
Love logic is hidden by the feelings of passion, happiness, and caring. Logical people can be too Logical for a relationship.
Though, logic can still be used in a relationship to gain a better understanding.
But the problem with being too logical in love is that often you can seem cold and distant. Being too logical in an argument with your partner may make you seem that you do not care.
Logical VS Emotional relationship
Often, in relationships, one partner tends to be more logical, while the other tends to be more emotional.
In an argument, if you are the logical partner, you would explain your view on the situation using facts and truths. That’s your logic mind playing.
Your intentions are good, but this approach can make your partner feel that they are not being ‘heard’. It can bring out their negative emotions and leave them feeling unimportant.
Logical VS Practical
Logic and practical are different, as logic disagrees with the term ‘practical’ thinking.
Logic is based on theories and facts, while practical is based on actions and practice.
Practical people make their decision on practices and thoughts. They reject the idea that the function of thoughts is to describe or represent.
They solve their problems by acting on their solutions to test them. If you are a practical person, you need to test out your solutions to your problems.
Overall, to better know yourself, it is useful to take the logic vs emotion test. It tests whether you are a logical thinker or an emotional thinker.
In return, this helps you to improve your logical thinking or vice versa. Logic and emotion are two very different brain states. However, they are very vital in your everyday decision-making tool.
Though being too of a logical mind, might bring conflicts in a relationship. That is why it is also useful to know how to balance logical and emotional thinking.