Law of Holes

[DISCLAIMER]

I learned a thing or two about digging holes when residing in an all-male cottage of a children’s home during my eighth and ninth grade years. “Idle hands are the devil’s workshop,” I was told, meaning that people with nothing to do are more likely to get into trouble, mischief, or sin.

This was expressed, because boredom was said to have opened a proverbial door to negative influences or nonadaptive behavior, supposedly acting as Satan’s tools of temptation. As most of the boys in my cottage were placed for conduct-related issues, our hands were kept busy.

This strategy was based on biblical wisdom. According to the King James Version of Proverbs 16:27, “An ungodly man diggeth up evil: and in his lips there is as a burning fire.” The Living Bible translation states, “Idle hands are the devil’s workshop; idle lips are his mouthpiece.”

With this biblical founding, boys in my cottage were provided with several sets of shovels and post hole diggers (tool used to dig holes in the ground, typically from a few inches to a about a foot in diameter, for general purposes such as setting fence and sign posts, or planting saplings.)

Hailing from the Panhandle region of Texas, it was then that I became well-acquainted with caliche (a soil accumulation of soluble calcium carbonate at depth, where it precipitates and binds other materials—such as gravel, sand, clay, and silt). There wasn’t much fertile ground.

Nonetheless, my houseparents ordered something like 100 saplings for planting. The depth of each post hole was required to be no less than three feet deep. Shattering the wooden handles of shovels and post hole diggers, fresh replacement tools consisted of metal poles.

At about the two-foot depth, caliche caused the metal handles to vibrate the tool holder’s hands. It produced numbing and simultaneously painful sensations, as though thousands of tiny stickpins were jabbed in and out of my hands. Each day, the devil apparently stayed away.

That’s around the time that I learned the value of gamification (the process of adding games or game-like elements to something, such as a task, so as to encourage participation). Specifically, the boys in my cottage learned to gamify the process of digging holes.

“Who can go to six feet the fastest?” was a challenge one boy posited. Our post hole diggers were five feet long, so we’d essentially bury the tool at some point during the digging process. Still, I became quite proficient at pounding through the caliche that was once burdensome.

The boys eventually all found enjoyment in the process of digging. After we’d planted all of the saplings, we then ventured into the empty field in front of the children’s home and engaged in digging contests. Also, adding shovels to the routine allowed for larger holes.

I then discovered the law of holes. Per one source, “The law of holes, or the first law of holes, is an adage which states: ‘If you find yourself in a hole, stop digging.’ It is used as a metaphor, warning that when in an untenable position, it is best to stop making the situation worse.”

Standing in a muddy hole, as water was added during the caliche-busting process, a person slips and slides to the point whereby the potential for a digging-related injury increases substantially. This actual and metaphorical concept is now worth further considering, as a read a book.

As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) is informed by Stoic philosophy, this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding a book entitled The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman.

The authors quote ancient Roman emperor and Stoic philosopher Marcus Aurelius who stated, “How much more harmful are the consequences of anger and grief than the circumstances that aroused them in us” (page 183). This matter concerns a psychoeducational lesson on REBT.

REBT uses the ABC model to illustrate that when an Action occurs and you Believe an unhelpful narrative about the event, it’s your unfavorable assumption, not the occurrence itself, that causes a Consequence (e.g., anger). This is known as self-disturbance (i.e., digging holes).

In particular, there are four predominate irrational beliefs which people often use when metaphorically digging holes: global evaluations, low frustration tolerance, awfulizing, and demandingness. When contemplating these unproductive beliefs, think of the acronym GLAD.

For example, I slipped and slid in a hole when digging (Action). I then Believed, “This busy work is worthless [G], and I can’t stand it [L]! My idle hands are preferable to this awful hole that I’m in [A], because I shouldn’t have to stay busy just to keep the devil away [D]!”

I then made myself angry (Consequence). From a psychological view, people disturb themselves using a Belief-Consequence (B-C) connection. Of course, this isn’t to suggest that in the context of the naturalistic or physical world there is no Action-Consequence (A-C) connection.

When literally digging a hole (i.e., A-C connection) while metaphorically digging one (i.e., B-C connection), my personal script was the cause of my anger. Thus, the law of holes was violated. The more I dug (i.e., unproductively believed), the further into a hole I went (i.e., consequence).

Addressing how people upset themselves with unhelpful attitudes, the ABC model incorporates Disputation of unproductive philosophies of life in order to explore Effective new beliefs. Whereas rigid beliefs cause self-disturbance, flexible beliefs result in an un-disturbed condition.

Although not mentioned according to its conceptual term, Aurelius addressed the B-C connection. The circumstance (e.g., literally digging a hole) wasn’t as harmful as the consequence (i.e., self-disturbance). About this, authors of The Daily Stoic state (page 183):

The first rule of holes, goes the adage, is that “if you find yourself in a hole, stop digging.” This might be the most violated piece of commonsense wisdom in the world. Because what most of us do when something happens, goes wrong, or is inflicted on us is make it worse—first, by getting angry or feeling aggrieved, and next, by flailing around before we have much in the way of a plan.

I’ve spent enough time digging holes when at the children’s home and while enlisted as a United States Marine that I can attest to the B-C law of holes metaphor. The more one digs without a rational plan, the worse the situation becomes. Conclusively, the authors state (page 183):

Today, give yourself the most simple and doable of tasks: just don’t make stuff worse. Whatever happens, don’t add angry or negative emotions to the equation. Don’t react for the sake of reacting. Leave it as it is. Stop digging. Then plan your way out.

Favorably, the lesson taken from my youth, regarding the digging of holes, is illustrated herein. You weren’t required to experience hand numbness or pain in order to benefit from this teaching. Now that you have the information, what will you do with it? The caliche of life awaits you!

If you’re looking for a provider who tries to work to help understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life—helping you to sharpen your critical thinking skills, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.

As a psychotherapist, I’m pleased to try to help people with an assortment of issues ranging from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.

At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply trying to help you to feel better, I want to try to help you get better!

Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW

Photo credit, fair use

References:

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