Sherlock Holmes is one of the most renowned fictional characters of all time. His seemingly infinite wisdom and unrivalled detective skills have become the inspiration for hit movies, international gatherings of sherlockians and of course, the Sherlock Holmes Tartan range. It is incredible how much entertainment has come from just one fictional character. But there is more to the stories of Sherlock Holmes than just entertainment, some of his wisdom is highly transferable to real life. That’s why in this blog post I have extracted 4 valuable life lessons from the adventures of Sherlock Holmes.

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1. Don’t let your emotions cloud your judgement

Everyone is capable of getting overly emotional about things. It’s just part of life. However it is not always useful to let your emotions run wild. Sherlock had a profound mastery of his emotions that I think everyone should try to emulate sometimes. To quote the fictional mastermind himself, “love is an emotional thing, and whatever is emotional is opposed to that true cold reason which I place above all things”. Of course this isn’t to say we should live without love. But I think we can learn from Sherlock’s ability to remove his personal bias and emotions from a situation, in order to see things how they really are.

2. Learn to observe

“You see, but you do not observe.” Sherlock’s observational skills are the foundation of his detective prowess. More often than not it was the finer details of a mystery that would lead Sherlock to success. So do not always assume you have the whole story from a first glance, learn to really observe because the solution to some problems is not always obvious.

3. Trust in yourself and your unique perspective on life

It has become so easy now to just google the answer to any little problem that we have. Information is so widely available and when it comes to certain issues we like to rely on others for assurance, due to their credibility, status or whatever it may be. But sometimes YOU are right and you should trust yourself enough to know that sometimes you do know best. You should never be afraid to share your unique perspective because it is valuable. Sherlock knew this and didn’t let the opinions of others intimidate him, “Dear God. What is it like in your funny little brains? It must be so boring”.

4. Don’t overthink it - not every problem requires a complex solution

I know we spoke about the importance of paying close attention and observing the minor details, but Sherlock is careful not to go too far with this. Over thinking or over analysing every little thing in life is a waste of time and might cause you unnecessary stress. Sometimes you just have to trust in sound logic and reason, not every problem requires a highly complex solution. "How often have I said to you that when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth?”.

This blog post is only a drop in the ocean of wisdom that could be extracted from Sherlock Holmes, but I hope it gave my fellow Sherlockians something to think about. A good book can be really powerful and the existence of Sherlock Holmes Tartan is a testament to that fact, as we wouldn’t be here today without Sir Arthur’s brilliant work.