Is having a holistic approach heartless?

Preamble

Well now, isn’t that title a bit provocative?! 🤠

This article is a personal reflection, and therefore only represents my own views.

Holistic… what?

Let’s start by defining it.

While browsing a well-known search engine, I came across someone who had already gathered good resources: the Hello Bokeh blog. Good old Wikipedia is also a solid baseline.

A holistic (or systemic) approach means considering an object or situation as a whole rather than in isolated parts. This perspective can be applied in any context — social, economic, political, etc.

Hmm, maybe a concrete example?

I have plenty.

Let’s take a tense exchange with someone.

I’ll try to understand why that person became upset.

At what moment? What were my last words? Theirs? If I know them, what mood were they in at the start? Am I aware of their personal issues? Their day’s problems? What about mine? What was my mood before things escalated?

Depending on all this, the outcome of the conversation will not be assessed the same way — nor will my reaction during (or after, with hindsight).

Yes, this means being able to consider each side’s perspective and possibly identify mitigating factors to show that nothing is entirely black or white — there are shades of gray.

Is that being heartless?

The intention is precisely to take the whole situation into account rather than only one side’s lens 👐.

So, is it really heartless?

Doesn’t analyzing all the emotions involved in a context — ours and others’ — allow for a better understanding of the situation?

We take everyone’s emotions into account and adapt our reactions accordingly. This can reduce our own biases and help us better listen to different viewpoints.

(That said, it is exhausting to have a brain that constantly runs this kind of analysis 😵‍💫.)

And since AI is so trendy these days, what would a famous one say? Yes — I asked 🙂.

Well, no: apparently, it’s not heartless.

One last, even more concrete example?

This kind of approach is very relevant in any investment decision.

Imagine we own a residential building in decent condition. The common areas, however, are rather outdated. Tenants or visitors don’t really take care of them — after all, they’re not very appealing.

We have one vacant apartment, in good condition, renovated while preserving its original character — somewhat atypical (ceiling moldings, marble fireplace, etc.). We struggle to re-rent it.

So we decide to try short-term rentals. We don’t know the area well, and there are few listings on major platforms — but let’s try.

However, with guest ratings involved (which is fair), the common areas will be the first thing guests see — including the broken intercom — before reaching the apartment.

They may assume it reflects what comes next.

They climb the stairs already carrying a conscious or unconscious negative bias.

Their mood may also have shifted (or was already bad — no parking, bad weather, etc.). Any minor issue in the apartment may then be amplified.

They might take less care of both the apartment and the common areas:

“Well, it’s old and not very clean anyway — why bother?”

Can we really blame them? Such reactions are instinctive, often shaped by upbringing or past experiences.

I mentioned the damaged intercom — likely the very first thing they see.

Ultimately, not investing in improving common areas (fresh paint, some artwork, maybe new flooring) can create a strong domino effect.

And this isn’t only about short-term guests — what about long-term tenants?

It can reduce their desire to stay or maintain shared spaces, since:

“The common areas aren’t very appealing anyway…”

This may range from simple neglect to reduced rigor in paying rent. Isn’t that, to some extent, understandable?

(Yes, this example was far too specific to be fictional 😅.)

Conclusion

Through all this, I wanted to describe an approach that is part of my daily life — probably a bit too much.

While it has downsides, such as flirting with overthinking and over-analysis, I try to stay focused on the benefits illustrated above.

Do you recognize yourself in this approach?

If so, feel free to reach out — I’d be happy to connect with fellow overthinkers 🤯.

If not, well, I’m glad I could show you a glimpse into this kind of tortured brain 😁.