Distortion of Truths: How to Not Be Ignorant in an Ignorant World

Matthew Pham
Sep 8, 2018 · 5 min read
Photo by Fabrizio Verrecchia on Unsplash

“In a world too often governed by corruption and arrogance, it can be difficult to stay true to one’s philosophical and literary principles.” –Lemony Snicket

Right now, we live in a time when truth appears more distorted than ever.

When I say “truth,” I mean both our perceptions of reality and our understanding or interpretation of others’ perspectives.

So many of us seem disconnected from the world and reality. Everyone lives in their own heads while dismissing the views of others.

With the rise of accessible information online and social media, just about anyone can share their opinions with a click. We grow up witnessing such a limited and skewed representation of larger communities. Schools teach outdated information. Social media and news platforms struggle with distinguishing real from fake. Unparalleled political tensions and outspoken online groups drive conversations towards one extreme or the other.

Truth bias pervades much of our daily lives.

About Me

Before I go on about how to develop a healthier relationship with truth, here’s some background.

I come from a stance of practicality. I grew up surrounded by heavy competition. Growing up with a twin brother has always challenged me to push my limits in all endeavors. We both pursued performing magic acts, martial arts competitions, texas hold ‘em poker, and any other competitive activities we could join.

Competition and sports deal with actual people and skills. In competition, you cannot live in your head. That would not be practical. There’s no faking it when you’re up against someone else also trying to win. There’s no “belief is everything,” “everyone else told me I can win,” or “build it and they’ll come” mentality. If you misjudge the audience’s attention, a sleight of hand trick might not generate the best reaction. If you misjudge an opponent’s movement, you can get struck or miss your own strike. If you attack the opponent’s defense, you have a lower chance of success. These are the truths of competition. Truth becomes dynamic, something that continuously adapts to new situations.


The Pursuit of Truth

Competition is dynamic primarily because it forces interactions between people—and people are dynamic.

We each hold unique perspectives and ideas, yet too many of us are quick to argue on another’s opinion and relative perspective. The search for truth should not divide us as much as it does today.

Even though we all come from different places and backgrounds, we all go through the same things and experience the same feelings. Where we differ is in our reactions and responses, based on differences in tolerance, personality, and temperament. To call a person wrong for that would be a failure to recognize a person’s humanity.

In philosphy, there are two main schools of thought surrounding truth: absolute truth and relative truth. Personally, I think it’s best to believe in a truth that lies somewhere in between the two extremes. Absolute truth lacks empathy. It implies that one answer fits all, but different people may need different answers. Relative truth lacks practicality. Some truths become less relative through experimentation and discussion; truths do not only exist within a person’s head.

In this middle ground, our pursuit of truth does not have to divide. Instead, it can be more:

  • cooperative | we can compromise to get closer to agreement
  • empathetic | we learn to understand the person behind the words
  • inspirational | we find inspiration, not conflict, from differences in opinion
  • educational | we listen more to others before speaking

I assume everyone would appreciate if the pursuit of truth led to these ideals. I think the solution is awareness—of each specific situation, of a person’s mental state, of body language, etc. In fact, it cannot be simple awareness; it has to be hyper-awareness.

Hyper-Awareness

Earlier, I proposed that truth is dynamic, that it’s always changing and only relevant in proper context. Acknowledging this alone helps to slow the intuitive and emotional response, increasing receptivity to new ideas.

To me, developing hyper-awareness means being open to new experiences, then being highly aware of each specific situation. This enables a person to understand truth at a subtler, finer level. In martial arts, for example, the two fighters can orient themselves in a potentially endless number of ways. And for every orientation, there exists a separate ideal technique or set of techniques to attack or defend (to best suit body type, personality, aggression, etc.). In other words, for different situations, there are different appropriate responses (or truths) to figure out.

To me, developing hyper-awareness means being open to new experiences, then being highly aware of each specific situation.

Call to Action

By definition, it takes continuous effort to not be ignorant—to find the truths in life. So of course, I’m still on this journey.

What I know so far is we’re all incredibly fortunate to be on this world together, the many billions of us. So the challenge is how we can get along and resolve whatever problems arise among us. Some of us grew up in astonishingly different circumstances than others, so remember that everyone has a different story to share. Be open to new experiences and aware of the countless situations encountered each day.

Everyone has a different story to share.

Remember that most people actually dislike listening. Seize the opportunity to listen to them instead and hear what they have to share. When listening, try to find: cooperation and empathy | inspiration and education. And in every smile, impart acknowledgement, admiration, and appreciation.

I like to think of life as one giant puzzle. Every person holds a separate piece, and I have to understand all their various perspectives to begin seeing the big picture. With this mindset, I always approach encounters simply to take away something new and meaningful—an idea, some inspiration, a memorable story.

Photo by Ryoji Iwata on Unsplash

If you made it to the end, thank you so much for your time. The world is a busy place with many other things to do, so I appreciate you for taking the time to read what I wrote.

I would love to hear what you think. Let me know in the comments or by sending me a message.


Here are some further readings you might find interesting if you enjoyed what I wrote:

Factfulness by Hans Rosling

This book is highly recommended by Bill Gates. In it, Rosling tells us that facts demonstrate the world is actually improving over time, despite bias and pessimism coming from media and other sources.


The Psychology of Human Misjudgement by Charlie Munger

Transcript: https://buffettmungerwisdom.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/mungerspeech_june_95.pdf

This is a speech delivered by Munger at Harvard University. Business partner to Warren Buffet, Charlie Munger explains the cognitive biases and how to use psychology to make better decisions in business, investing, and life.

Matthew Pham

Written by

On a mission to Live Healthily, Flavorfully, and Magically — Create the Future — Discover What's Possible — Share my Story

Welcome to a place where words matter. On Medium, smart voices and original ideas take center stage - with no ads in sight. Watch
Follow all the topics you care about, and we’ll deliver the best stories for you to your homepage and inbox. Explore
Get unlimited access to the best stories on Medium — and support writers while you’re at it. Just $5/month. Upgrade