Common sense or Conman sense

Some of us have used both basis convenience or have been the subject of receiving both. It seems to me that the fine art of using common sense or conman sense has been under constant refinement by one and all – imagine the extent of our obsession with such a refinement. The ease, with which we switch from the shades of white to grey and back of course, seems to be so natural to some of us that it almost feels to be a virtuoso. In some manner, I have started to think if these are two sides of the coin – of course probability rules in our manifestation of the role of senses, but then are we akin to a coin, branded on either side with the categorization of senses for public display?

So what makes us cultivate these senses and or our ability to switch roles between the two? I feel the seeds of conman sense are sowed, nurtured and taught to be reaped almost simultaneously to the common sense. But then somewhere along, one of the senses seems to overtake, outclass and outshine the other in us and we seem to possess that as an inherent trait of our personality without even realizing it. As a society we have come to acknowledge the presence of both, denial of conman sense when it comes to us and stamp of approval on conman sense for others. The prevalence of the two senses is now so widespread that even a seemingly innocuous brief conversation with a stranger is being filtered through the lenses of conman sense.

To some extent, I feel the way we are taught, formally and informally, and our ‘chalta hai attitude’ has fuelled the growth of the two senses. Since the probability of meeting some repeat customers is remote, let’s use the conman sense to get the task done. And of course, even if it’s a regular customer, a pinch of salt in a dump of flour would hardly be noticed. Whosoever said that the means are as important as the end was actually right - pick the one which suits you, helps you get the task done and move on without an iota of remorse / guilt.

In all fairness, I feel most of us must have vacillated between the two senses at some point of time and used both senses – temptations are natural. I know of people who have risen in their professional and personal lives using more of common sense and have also been witness to the rise of those who use more of conman sense. But one thing is for sure – your reputation precedes your physical being. Customers, deciding on meeting people basis there reputation and still worse, out rightly rejecting meeting some, are slowly gaining ground. They do reference checks on suppliers and are increasingly interacting with the sales fraternity through the lenses of caution – I feel we are still some distance away from ‘suspicion’. Just imagine – meeting a customer and trying to sell him a solution while first clearing the air of suspicion. Seems much like a courtroom drama – I am clean and I do clean transactions.

Much like the evolutionary process of humans, I think it’s time we cultivate our ability to spot the difference between the uses of the two senses to take the right decisions. It’s one thing to possess the ability to execute the two senses basis convenience and another being able to spot them.

By

 Sumit Singh

Dated : 14 Oct’12