Benefiting at work from Brain Based Insights

In my bones, my fiber I know the information you present to be true.

Ellen,

I think the key here is that you should not surrender your judgment to anything, including your own stubbornness. While you should take a stand and act on your convictions, you should simultaneously scan and remain open to the presence of evidence, or new interpretations of old evidence, that might suggest you have it wrong, or at least partially wrong.

That's not easy, but it's what judgment is all about. Anything else - that is, anything that represents an effort to suspend, shortcut, or bypass the need to exercise and express judgment - might even be interpreted as a maladaptive pathology. In the context of your essay, that would apply not only to mindless persistence, but to mindless irresolution.

Those are just thoughts popping into mind on reading the post - I won't quit thinking about until I'm satisfied I've got it right!

Thanks!

Er... what Jim said! (I was all set to write an absolutely brilliant comment, but Jim beat me to it! *sigh*)

I completely agree - when you get down to it, truly great leaders not only have powerful visions and the drive to reach them, but the ability to change the goals when needed to keep from getting stalemated!

There's more than one way to success, if you're willing to relax a bit and consider options.

Jim, once you toss judgment into the mix -- the equasion changes. Interesting -- I need to think about this one more. Thanks for the insights!

Robert and Jim, I sense you are also getting into the finer areas of chemicals that fuel achievement - even when the path is rough. To hold on - at the expense of healthy chemicals - seems to be the issue here -- as I see it. You guys make us think in far deeper water! Thanks!

Sometimes it amazes me that research comes around to confirm what common sense knew all along. In this case it's important because a generation of motivational speakers and success gurus have told us never to give up, no matter what. That's simply stupid.

Why persist on a course that was a bad idea to begin with? Another factor here is the idea that you can, somehow, pick a course of action and be right about it all the time. I much prefer an approach to life and business that involves experiments, trying things to see if they work and then persisting if the idea still seems good.

Seth Godin has written an excellent little book on this called The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick).

Wally, your intriguing comment nudged me to a post in response. Thanks. My question back ... Is common sense really common? In fact what is common sense anyway? Your turn:-)