Wise saying from Walter Henrichsen

Motives are like your conscience in that you can never know you have a pure one. 

He seemed to imply that we are limited in knowing ourselves, for example, we couldn't even know our motives sources and conscience sources.
                                                                                                  edited from article June 1, 2011                                                 


Responses:


CN
It dawns on me last night that without a reflecting surface like a mirror, we never see our faces. What we know about our face is only a reflection. Mirror reflects, and other people reflect.




NP
There could be more than one motive. That's the reality of life.

Certainly some motives could be tainted - not pure. What is nice to hear - flattering and embellished laudable motives are still what public relation experts suggest we use.

So should we try to know our motives in its purity or should we go by some commonly acceptable nicely worded motives to fit in? Or should we walk away from the sincere ritualistic utters of motives (justificatiosn and rationalizations) even if it brings good will to others by going at odd against the expected common motives?

Do not forget some motives may not be in a form that could easily be expressed in words. It could be a very private motive not appropriate to be communicated to others.

Let say in hiring. What are our motives to apply for a specific job? What are our motives wanting to be hired? It would be laudable to say it is "our passio". Our calling? Yes. Good answer. How would it sound if we say we are interested in the pay? Or some others such as "Out of necessity to work?" "Going after social status?" "To meet the expectation of parents?" I think one stand a better chance to get hired by staying around the idea of interested in the job or  company and for self-fulfillment. Even if it is true that you want to avoid being a freeloader, need to pay rent, have many mouths to feed, it is not the norm to answer up this way in a job interview. Isn't it?

Let us take another type of social occasion for the sake of illustration: "an invitation" to a wedding. Who will be invited and what are our motives? Some flattering motives are "Love their company" " To celebrtae with family" How would the guests feel if we tell them it is "out of obligations"? Or that we prefer big groups with a Cathedral full of guests for photos and media reports? I am sure there are hosts who invite others "To show off" or include a few more because of the need for logistics such as needed drivers to pick up others. I am sure some motives could be mixed such as  Keeping up with appearance of social ties"? and "Do not want to offended others by leaving them out"? or "returning reciprocity" to ensure one would be then invited later to other weddings?

Even if it is not all too pure, the motives, I personally would rather hear motives that are moving and appropriate than hearing motives that are unexpected and shocking. So better kept some motives to oneself or find ways to make it sound appropriate and becoming.

In our preparation to face the world, we learn to rationalize or explain to ourselves the "why" - finding the motives. That may be why motives could sound alike from different individuals - it has become ritualized. Rituals prevent disaccordance. When repeated, it become the expected.

Going back to our original quiry: is it better to have a pure motive? Is it more truthful to find the real motive and articulate it?

I don't have an answer. Being not so "die hard" to find the pure real motive. I may simply say - if one is not sure, better use the ritualized motives. Why make life difficult for oneself and for others? What is wrong with going by the normative rationals that we have learnt?

As an end note, could someone tell me "Could one simply do something because one feels like it, at that moment". Is this a good enough motive?


Peter Liu Thank you for many good examples. I started with management arguments. The quote from Walter is religious. He wants us to know that we are limited. We can never be sure of anything. So we cannot boast of ourselves. He wants us to acknowledge that there are in certainties even in our own salvation. So that we can only do is trust with faith.