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Black and white, or shades of grey thinking

TheCatWoman

I see many people here talk of black and white thinking and that it's a very ND thing. I rarely think in black and white and nearly always in shades of grey, for me everyhthing is about context and nuance. Often I find black and white thinking like being slapped in the face by a wet fish, it's such a shock, it's also not something I particularly associate with ND but with with mostly male NT's.

It's something I find quite alienating, something that marks me out as different to both other ND's and NT's. It's not that I can't be analytical or decisive, although to some it may seem so, usually when I disagree with them and it's a case of refusing to take their stance, or be bounced into something I'm unsure of. Although I do tend to let things happen organically, the right thing comes at the right time without interfearance from me.

Are you all black and white, or are you grey?

What's your experience of being asked to think in the opposite way?

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  • TheCatWoman said:
    Are you all black and white, or are you grey?

    I am more inherently black and white in my thinking but I had to learn to think in all 50 shades as time went on and I moved into management as there are so many sides to a situation that you have to deal with that binary thinking is not helpful.

    Negotiations are also something that requres a constantly shifting stance and way of thinking to reach a desired outcome. You often need to approach it from a more extereme position to start with knowing you will need to flex in your demands and eventually meet somewhere in between.

    For people who stay in the same sort of lower level roles their whole careers and who show ND traits I have seen a lot of this lack of flexibility over the years. It seems an essential skill to progress socially too.

    Rule following seems a classic symptom of this and I see a lot of it here where people seem infuriated that others can bend or break the rules and get away with stuff. I can remember a time when this was true of me so I appreciate where they are coming from.

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  • TheCatWoman said:
    Are you all black and white, or are you grey?

    I am more inherently black and white in my thinking but I had to learn to think in all 50 shades as time went on and I moved into management as there are so many sides to a situation that you have to deal with that binary thinking is not helpful.

    Negotiations are also something that requres a constantly shifting stance and way of thinking to reach a desired outcome. You often need to approach it from a more extereme position to start with knowing you will need to flex in your demands and eventually meet somewhere in between.

    For people who stay in the same sort of lower level roles their whole careers and who show ND traits I have seen a lot of this lack of flexibility over the years. It seems an essential skill to progress socially too.

    Rule following seems a classic symptom of this and I see a lot of it here where people seem infuriated that others can bend or break the rules and get away with stuff. I can remember a time when this was true of me so I appreciate where they are coming from.

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