Where we store our valuables?

I was only thinking this the other day, and it really sounds obvious to talk about because it sounds so obvious that it should not need talking about. However, after talking to a person that illustrated my thoughts and assumptions in such a real-life demonstration I feel that it does need talking about, and commonsense is not all that common. Unless you are able to have a strong theory of mind.

So how did this thought first begin?

I reluctantly use reading glasses that I got for Chrismas about a year ago. To get these glasses I went to my local specialist and had my eyes tested. I was told that I need glasses. I could have told him that. and after the testing to see what strength eye-ware I needed and then buying the frames I like the end bill was over $300au. I take them to work with me, I use them at home. But when I do not use them they are just sitting on a desk, chair or in the classroom where I facilitate groups. Then as you do, I leave them there unsupervised, then promptly forget where I put them and then for the next two days make a spectacle of my self looking for the lost glasses. Pun intended.

This is what I was thinking while looking. If I would just leave $300 in cash sitting unattended, I would never see it again. However, it is not the same with things as it is with cash. This thought can be extended to other things besides a set of spectacles. A nice iPod or smartwatch left unattended would soon find a new home to live, because they are small and easy to pocket. Now an expensive phone is different because they are usually locked with a pin, face recognition or fingerprint, thus harder to repurpose. 

I had a friend that concreted his beautiful wrought Iron garden setting into the ground. At first, I looked and commented on how the setting was a classical retro 1950 Australian garden setting. then I saw that it was cemented down. “How could you do that to such a beautiful thing?”. My mate just smiled, “I like it too, I like it so much that I want to keep it, So I put cement around the legs of the table so it won’t walk away on me”.  I was looking at the resale value of the setting and he was thinking about the beauty and use of the setting. Nice treasures on display need securing, or removing when not supervised.

There are times your beloved items will travel and then return. LOL. Like that lucky Garden Gnome. But more often than not they will find their way to be sold off to a customer that does not know it is a stolen item. Then trying to get the item/s back will be an absolute nightmare and cause you stress.

Theory of Mind:

I have been told by my Grand Father many times that “We tend to judge others by our own yardstick”.

Theory of mind is a psychological term that in short means that we have the ability to guess what others are thinking by using our own memory or assume what we would do in a similar situation. However, if we have never thought about a situation or conducted a mental experiment that revolves around that situation, we would not even think of the situation till it happens.

Hence, If we leave an item that you treasure around, even if it is screwed down, do not underestimate the length a person would go to possess your stuff. My wife and my grandfather stated “Always think of the lowest common denominator when it comes to peoples behaviour” This is why WHS (Work Health and Safty) guidelines have been established and in some cases put into law.