Think Fast and/or Slow Steadily.
‘Thinking, Fast and Slow,’ by Daniel Kahneman is a highly recommended reading to anyone including leaders and aspiring leaders. He talked about the two ways in which our brain works, “System 1 and System 2. System 1 operates automatically and quickly, with little or no effort of voluntary control. System 2 allocates attention to the effortful mental activities that demand it, including complex computation. The operations of system 2 are often associated with the subjective experience of agency, choice, and concentration.” [1] It is within these two systems that affect each individual on a daily basis. It describes how we make decisions, judgements, or even errors, though it seem to be sound decisions or judgments in the first place.
2017) [2] in his article, ‘What I learned from “Thinking Fast and Slow,” described system 1 as ‘gut-reaction’ way of thinking and making decisions, while system 2 as the “critical thinking” means of decision makings. He went on to say that it is within System 1 that individuals tend to assume/ or jump to conclusions because of the first impressions made. And on the other hand, System 2 more problem-solving and analysis is involved due to the unavailability of sufficient information.
History is filled with decisions that had major implications. 2019) [3] shared about some decisions that altered World History. A few of them are as follows: (1.) Martin Luther King improvised ‘I Have a Dream’: King was ready to deliver the prepared speech, however, when the Mahalia Jackson (gospel singer) whom was in the audience yelled out, ‘tell ‘em about the dream,” King improvised, and was speaking from the heart without the notes and delivered the ‘I HAVE A DREAM SPEECH’. (2.) President T. Roosevelt Campaign Speech: In 1912, before delivering his 50-page campaign speech, he randomly decided to put it in his breast pocket, a decision that saved his life. An assailant shot him in the chest and the bullet was deterred by amount of paper in his pocket. And (3.) The Tragedy of Titanic: David Blair, second officer was detained from the ship before it went on the tragic voyage; he forgot to hand over the keys to a locker that contained the binoculars the crews use to watch for icebergs. Unfortunately, the crews can’t see the iceberg.
To think fast and/or to think slow for leaders is essential in decision making as the followers look to the leaders for guidance. Therefore, it is a must to remember that our brain uses 2 different thinking system for two different purposes, and both are essential in decision making. To think fast intuitively when necessary and to think slowly and steadily in problem-solving situations.
[1] Kahneman, Daniel. Thinking, Fast and Slow (pp. 20-21). Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Kindle Edition.
[2] Ranadive, Ameet. What I learn from “Thinking Fast and Slow.” https://medium.com. (Retrieved March 01, 2024).
[3] Roget, Stephan. 13 Last-Minute Decisions That Changed World History. http://ranker.com (Retrieved March 1, 2024)
About the Author
Noel Liemam
8 responses to “Think Fast and/or Slow Steadily.”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Thank you Noel for your post. I don’t know what your project is, but do you see any value in Thinking Fast and Slow for your NPO and your project?
Hi, Mr. Blackman, thank you for your comment and for redirecting me toward my NPO. My NPO is. “Micronesian citizens living in the Pacific Northwest (Oregon and Washington) have unmet equity in through livable-wage jobs and higher education,” and I believe that it seems to me that it was through the system 1 that I came up with this NPO. And maybe with more analytical or more concentration that I would need to be able to continue my paper/research. I am not sure if this make sense. I did not even think about my NPO in light of system 1 and system 2, thank you for bringing it to my attention.
Hi Noel, When you think about System
1 and System 2, do you find that you are particularly reliant on one system over the other? What are some areas to grow in balancing both systems to make good decisions?
Hi, Julie, thank you for pointing that out. I was even thinking about it. Why is that? Is that because system was built up system one? I only think of them as separate system as one is quick response without much thought to it, while the latter is more thought out or carefully calculated. Thanks, Julie, I would want to know what you meant exactly.
Thanks for sharing, Noel. I’m curious – how do you personally relate to each system and where/in what ways you’ve experienced the benefit of each?
Thanks, Akwese, for the response. I have never been in leadership position of a major organizations, but only small groups in which I relate to some examples. (1.) For system 1, when I was asked (as a leader of the organization) to for approval or disapproval and my decision is the final decision. (2.) For system 2. it is when there is a long-term plan/ or even sometimes short-term plan that would require problem-solving and critical thinking. Those are the two examples; I am not sure if I am making any sense. And thanks for engaging!
Hi Noel, I appreciated your use of Kahneman’s words concerning System 2 that emphasis agency, choice, and concentration.
How do you see System 1 and System 2 complimenting each other in the historical events you listed?
Noel, you do a great job of articulating the differences and need for both system 1 and 2 in your post. How do you hope to develop an increased awareness of identifying which system is best suited for different situations?