Are you ever guilty of leaping to conclusions?
Are your leapt-to conclusions ever wrong?
It is a natural instinct to be reactive, most often when something negative happens. Our adrenaline starts pumping, our heart starts hammering, and rational thought seems to fly out the nearest window.
Perhaps this isn’t the best way to handle bad situations.
How about trying some good pieces of advice my mother told me:
- Count to ten before saying anything.
- If you want to put something in writing, compose it now and HOLD IT FOR 24 HOURS. Sleep on it, and revisit the next day. If you still want to send it, go ahead.
People rarely get in trouble by not saying something, and conversely will often find themselves in a mess if they speak out too soon.
As an example, last December, one of my coworkers arranged to produce for a new client a MASSIVE number of specialized “mood changing” printed plastic tumblers that change colors when held. These were expensive and time sensitive. When we began the quality control assessment, she discovered that the tumblers were not clear as ordered, but a multitude of colors.
“Oh my god!” she panicked, “I have 22,000 incorrect, specially printed tumblers, and they are due tomorrow!” Immediately, she got on the phone to find out what had gone wrong. After chewing the head off of someone in manufacturing, she realized that the tumblers were colorful because they had been shipped during the winter and it was cold outside! Once they warmed up to room temperature, they reverted back to their specified “clear” state.
If my coworker had gathered her thoughts and considered for a moment or two, she probably would have either figured it out for herself, been calm enough to ask the person in manufacturing politely, or even seen with her own eyes that the tumblers changing back to clear.
She might have 1 less gray hair and one less person in manufacturing thinking, “Wow.”
Just think of the main character in Led Zeppelin’s famous song, “Fool in the Rain.” Poor man, standing out in the rain, waiting to meet his newly beloved who seems to be a no-show and agonizing, “why, why, why don’t you love me?” only to realize that he was waiting for her on the wrong block.
Don’t jump to conclusions, take a measured moment to consider, gather yourself and martial your resources. Then, you will be in a much better position to handle many of life’s challenges.
Have a listen to Dave Matthews Band’s version of this classic song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiLffaqdkoI
