Doubt

Doubt is, in its own way, a powerful weapon. Or perhaps less a weapon than a shield. It allows us to steel ourselves from everything. If we doubt everything, accept no certainties, allow no definite expectations or accepted facts to govern our perception, we are able to entirely separate ourselves from the situation at hand.

The thing about doubt is that while it protects us, it also harms us in the process. It is like chain-mail, it stops us from getting hurt, or hurt nearly as much, at least. Yet even as it does so, it chafes and leaves scars, irritations, its own share of annoyances that, while not life-threatening, hurt no less perhaps than if they were.

So in reality, it's a matter of balance. It's a game of figuring out when the hurt of the protector is worse than the hurt of the attack. Doubt is capable of instilling isolation, calling everything into question, and removing the much-valued aspect of trust. Sometimes it is perhaps too easy to resort to doubt and avoid the pain, yet that leaves other vital aspects lacking.

Doubt is damaging. It is capable of causing great problems both in professional realms and in personal ones. It cuts off the possibility of confident interaction, and turns everything into a question, a game. And that, while entertaining in its own right, loses its amusement value quite quickly, particularly when, as is often the case, there is something precious at stake.

A measure of doubt is reasonable...it is logical and prevents excessive gullibility. Yet when allowed to take control, doubt stifles everything which is important, leads to paranoia, and prevents anything from being properly accomplished. As with all things in life, the thing about doubt is that it needs to be dealt with calmly and rationally, used cautiously and with a good sense of reality backing any decisions made with regard to it.