Don’t Be a Consistent Hobgoblin

“A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines,” Ralph Waldo Emerson famously mused in his essay, Self Reliance.

He recognized that new evidence often renders previous stances untenable, so an insistence on consistency often leaves us misaligned with our reason and our moral character over time.  

A devoted Democrat or Republican in 2003 would find themselves supporting a party with considerably different values in 2023. Only a thorough reexamination would reveal whether support is still warranted. 

That’s why labeling ourselves is so dangerous. We can’t think clearly about anything we let into our identity, so we need to stick with working hypotheses that we’re constantly reexamining and testing and don’t fully buy into.

When in doubt, remember the conclusion of the philosopher and Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius: “You always own the option of having no opinion.” (Meditations 6.52)