Definitions have been around for ages. They are more than words describing words. Proper definitions need to be in a certain way for conveying the essence of a term or concept accurately. The process of creating them requires a lot of planning and consideration.

A broad definition misses the essential part and a narrow one includes things that aren’t essential. Many definitions end up failing to solve their purpose due to circularity, obscurity and metaphors that unnecessarily complicate them.

A good definition is broad and narrow at the same time, it conveys what’s essential while being precise and sticking to the objective. It is genuine and doesn’t have any hidden stipulations.

Good definitions should not contain the word that is being defined itself. And lastly, defining something by stating what it’s “not” is an ineffective way of describing it. Sometimes this is unavoidable but definitions should generally be in a positive sense where they can be.

For example – Defining a ‘bird’ as “an animal that flies” is fallacious as birds like penguins and ostriches can’t fly. Defining them as “warm-blooded animal” would be too broad considering there other warm-blooded animal species like mammals, reptiles and lizards. And defining them as “feathered egg-laying animal” would be too narrow as there are male birds that get disregarded in this case.

Here, a good definition will contain all the essential characteristics in a complete, clear and honest manner. Merriam Webster defines ‘bird’ precisely as “Warm-blooded vertebrates distinguished by having the body more or less completely covered with feathers and the forelimbs modified as wings.”

Good definitions are valuable as  they help us to have better conversations, discussions and arguments. They let us have a common understanding of an issue even if we’re having clashing beliefs. Having proper definitions saves time as the audience gains the understanding of a term or concept in just one sentence that everyone agrees with.

After more than a year of working, studying and socialising from home, the meaning of the word ‘normal’ has changed. Whether you hated it at first or weren’t really tech-savvy, you somehow managed to adapt to it.

Slowly but ultimately the pandemic will end and the meaning of ‘normal’ will change once more. The same individuals who were facing difficulties with the work from home arrangement earlier have now become comfortable with it and don’t want to shift back to offline life again.

There’s also a sense of anxiety associated with it. Meeting people daily again and having a social life isn’t something many people have experienced for a long time. The pandemic has given workers and students a sight of a more comfortable working environment.

But will life ever get back to our ‘old’ normal? – Nobody knows the answer but definitely, the world has changed forever. In the initial stages of post-pandemic life, we’ll be incorporating certain functional aspects of the online world with human interaction to make it work. Humans are highly adaptable beings and have survived several pandemics in the past.

There’s also a bright side to look at. Effective vaccines usually take a decade or more to be developed and circulated. But in this case, it took less than a year for scientists to make the vaccines. It also made people realise the existence of death, the value of being alive and the importance of living at the moment. The definition of normalcy isn’t fixed but the part of it that does remain constant is the human experience.

Perspective matters. The way you look at something differs from the way I look at it. You may be able to see something that I can’t see, even if I stare at it for hours. We often assume people to have the same level of knowledge and interest as us in a given subject. However, everyone has their own realities and experiences. This isn’t something bad as it leads to unique conceptions that are valuable.

These days when I get stuck with something, I force myself to ask someone to review it and give their opinions on it. Insights from others are always helpful as they make us think things from a broader view and realise something new that we wouldn’t think of otherwise.

Taking other people’s perspective is also significant for building constructive relationships. People respect you more when you show eagerness to understand things from their point of view. Everyone has the same set of eyes, it’s the direction they’re looking at that makes a difference. Usually, there’s no right or wrong it’s only different.

In ‘The Power of Habit’, Charles Duhigg lays down the principle of moulding habits in three simple components – Cue, Routine and Reward. Together these three stops form what he calls the Habit Loop.

Cue – the reminder that prompts us to start the habit.
Routine – the habit in its active stage, taking place.
Reward – essentially, the satisfaction we receive once we’ve completed the habit loop. It is the thought in the brain that tells us if the habit is worth remembering or not.

The first step to mould habits is to identify the cue, routine and reward by writing them down. If it’s a good habit that needs to be adopted in the routine, we can try experimenting with the reward. The rewards are powerful as they make us crave them more by sticking to the routine. On the other hand, if it’s a bad habit – the practical way is to isolate the cue. If there is no cue, the loop doesn’t start.

Let’s say that the habit is being addicted to Instagram. To get rid of this bad habit, I should be eliminating the cues that lead to the action. Here, for example I can disable the notifications or uninstall the app. If it’s something good – studying regularly. To adopt the habit, I can experiment with different rewards such as watching one hour of my favourite show on the days I follow my studying schedule.

Still, I feel that a tremendous amount of self-discipline is required to mould habits. There’s no way to ‘hack’ the loop, it’s all about knowing what’s good for you and having a plan accordingly.