Clarity, Part 4: the risks of prefixes

Let me show you. ⬇

As humans, our brains are wired to store information from experiences—especially repeated ones.🧠 Our minds are designed to recognize patterns, creating mental “highways” for automatic thinking.

And thank goodness for that!

This hardwiring originally served a life-or-death purpose:

🔹 You see hoofprints in the mud—prey must be nearby!

🔸 You hear rustling in the bushes—have you just become the prey?

🔹 You encounter another human you don’t recognize—could they be a threat to your tribe?

The key process is:

❓ What do I see?

❓ Do I recognize it?

❓ Is it good or bad?

❓ What are the potential consequences?

❓ What action should I take?

The faster this thinking happens, the better your chances of avoiding danger.

So, what about prefixes? 🤔

Let’s talk about these three:

➡ Re-

➡ Pre-

➡ Mis-

Learning new things? Totally normal.

✅ What is it? I want to understand it.Judging things based on past experiences? Just as normal.

✅ Do I want this? Does it align with me?

Now watch what happens when these prefixes enter the picture:

💢 I want to REcognize it—otherwise, I don’t trust it.

💢 I REcognize it and have a PREjudice.

💢 I don’t REcognize it or have a PREjudice, so I Misdjudge it.

Notice the pattern?

🛑 All objectivity—your open-mindedness—disappears. 🛑

My plea: 📣

Be cautious about letting your “mental highways” drive your interactions with people.

I’ll say it again—and I’ll never stop saying it:

Most people are good.

Aim to understand, not assume. 🤝