(from Seth Godin’s blog dated 3/22/2015. Click here for the original post. Seth is the author of 17 books that have been bestsellers around the world. He writes about the post-industrial revolution, the way ideas spread, marketing, quitting, leadership and most of all, changing everything. You might be familiar with his books Linchpin, Tribes, The Dip and Purple Cow. Follow him on Twitter @thisissethsblog.)
Is that iPhone game really conspiring to put blue squares up at the last minute, just to foil your attempt at a perfect score?
Human beings are story-making engines, and when we’re confronted with randomness, we make up an egocentric version of what happened, and it involves us.
So when things randomly go well, we give ourselves a pat on the back, a reminder of why we deserved it. And when they don’t, we seek out the ghost in whatever machine did us wrong and come up with a reason.
Here’s the truth: There is no reason. That’s why we define it as random.
All the time we spend inventing reasons is probably better spent responding to what occurs.