Maybe You Should Judge.

I've been thinking about the word judgment.

We've become quick to say, "Don't judge." And I understand why. We don't know everyone's story, and we should question our assumptions, challenge our biases, and treat people with compassion.

But that's different from giving up our judgment.

In fact, good judgment is one of the most important resilience skills we can develop.

Data overwhelm isn't only due to the amount of information coming at us, it's caused by a lack of discernment. Every headline, opinion, statistic, AI summary, and social media post competes for our attention. Without judgment, it all feels equally important, equally urgent, and equally worthy of our energy.

Judgment is how we decide what aligns with our values and priorities. It's how we determine which information deserves our attention, which metrics are worth tracking, and which voices are worth listening to. When we're afraid to judge, we can easily be taken for a ride, or simply become overwhelmed trying to absorb everything.

I think this is true for our kids, too. Society says, "Don't judge." But that's not really the lesson we want to endorse. We want them to avoid making assumptions about people. We want them to question their biases and lead with kindness. But we also need them to develop good judgment. That's how they learn what's healthy, what's safe, what aligns with their values, and what doesn't.

As a doctor, I don't treat lab results, I treat people. Data informs my thinking, but judgment helps me understand what matters.

Resilience isn't about collecting more information. It's about developing the discernment to know what deserves your attention and the judgment to decide what you'll do with it.

That's one more way we can do stress better.

Have you noticed a time when a colleague (or family member) needed to judge more, not less?

All my best,

Dr. G