It only takes five seconds to mindfully make a decision, rather respond with a knee-jerk reaction. Quick enough to avoid analysis paralysis, but long enough to allow your rational, logical brain to kick in.
“Go slow to go fast” is a phrase I use often, with myself, my 10-year-old son, friends, co-workers, my family. For years, I’ve uttered that phrase without really, truly considering its meaning or power. Until my son, who is in fourth grade, thoughtfully paused one day and asked me to explain exactly what it meant, and specifically what I meant by saying it to him
Out of the mouths of kids, right?
They’re great questions, and very insightful that he broke them apart, since he wanted to be really sure both answers matched!
A little backstory on this phrase, that first entered my universe when I was relatively young. I can still picture the framed needlepoint art in my friend, Sarah’s, house: “The Hurrier I Go, The Behinder I Get.” Even at 13 years of age, that message resonated with me. I remember reading it, nodding and thinking, “Yep. Be thoughtful in decisions and actions.”
This isn’t to say we should drag our feet when it comes to making a decision. It is, however, to say we should pause and allow our brain to “check in” to allow time for a thoughtful, factual, accurate decision based on more than simply emotion but also on information, facts and data.
Let’s face it. Our brains are amazing, complex, and incredibly efficient. As Dr. Emma Sarro, a neuroscientist at the NeuroLeadership Institute explains, “humans make thousands of decisions every day and as a way to make these decisions more efficient, we’ve evolved a set of cognitive biases, which we often think of as ‘mental shortcuts’.” Dr. Sarro goes on explain, “biases often come with a bad connotation, but they can also help us. In fact, they evolved to help us survive and to most efficiently use the resources we have available.”
What is so interesting to me, is our brain has two speeds: Fast (System 1) and Slow (System 2). System 1 is the more instinct, emotion driven system that can be incredibly quick and efficient – but not always terribly concerned about facts and accuracy. System 2 is the logical, deliberate system, that serves to literally slow the brain down and take into account all the data from our instincts and emotions, but also “fact check” it.
The time it takes to slow down and allow the two systems to synch up and work in partnership with each other? Five seconds.
Just five seconds to mindfully make a decision, rather respond with a knee-jerk reaction. Quick enough to avoid analysis paralysis, but long enough to allow your rational, logical brain to kick in.
The result of allowing these two systems to work harmoniously in concert with one another? Fast, but informed decisions with fewer mistakes.
See? Go slow to go fast!.
