Floundering In Groupthink

Flounder: struggle clumsily in mud or water; struggle mentally; show or feel great confusion of not knowing.
Groupthink: the practice of thinking as a group, typically resulting in unchallenged, poor-quality decision making.

When we adopt a way of thinking by just imitating others, we lose the ability to think for ourselves. It’s shocking how easy it is for us to relinquish sanity. Have you met many people who take their minds apart to realise why they’ve been confused all their lives? It’s a scary business, looking into the mind to see where our fear came from. This is why most of us cling to others, floundering in groupthink. Been there, done that! Because of groupthink, there will never be a change at the ‘top’.

. . . . .

This is what meditation is all about
– the liberation from groupthink.

We may assume that we think for ourselves, but do we? Do we have an open mind? Left to our own devices, we just react from memories, which took root in our mind long ago. Few have the ability to change their minds; most may appear to ‘know’, but do they?

Meditation is not about being a good meditator, being able to sit still in vacancy. It’s about looking, seeing, and dropping all attachments while resting in pure awareness – very much alive and awake.
We may think that we are meditating, but has it had an effect on our behaviour, or is it affected behaviour? 🙂

To think for ourselves, we need a firm foundation as guidance, and that entails training the mind to be stable and realise what we ultimately are. All advice or information can be refined, taken to heart by internalising and living in accordance with advice. We can only know if the advice is correct if we practise. Advice is merely information; practice turns this into knowledge, and knowledge becomes wisdom in compassion.

In Buddhism, we have the six perfections to train us in compassion:

Generosity – open ears, mind and heart towards others.
Patience – steady attitude towards others.
Morality – right caring towards others.
Discipline – controlled behaviour toward others.
Concentration – the ability to focus.
Transcendent knowledge – knowing the truth of our reality which is pure consciousness.

Alternatively, we can start at pure consciousness, and use the other five perfections to support our conduct.

Groupthink drives out individual problem-solving
because of a desire for familiar family associations.
It’s called clinging.

We stop floundering when we recognise the mud.