The Norm Is To Jump

A study of 286 penalty shots found that soccer goalkeepers jump to the left or right 93.7% of the time to save the goal. Yet, the optimal strategy to save a goal could have been… to stay still.

Bias for action is an incentive-driven mechanism.

In hindsight, a successful save can be attributed to a heroic jump in the right direction while a failed save can be forgiven as a guess in the wrong direction. But how do you justify the action of the goalkeeper who stays put? Even if it saves more goals.

The norm is to jump.

Soccer player jumping to save a goal on nikhilkabadi.com — *Jumping costs more goals than staying still*

The sunk cost of an action is easy to measure compared to the hidden opportunity cost of inaction.

We often imagine our growth as a steady, linear progression fueled by hundreds of daily decisions. Yet, as Warren Buffett famously noted about his investments, a significant portion of success often hinges on a handful of decisions made over a lifetime.

In the book The Last Lecture, Randy Pausch quoted his father’s advice: “Never make a decision until you have to.”

This simple statement is a profound insight into mindfulness. I can’t help, but to re-iterate it.

“Never make a decision until you have to.”

And it’s not just good advice – it’s biology.

A rational decision-making process is a balance between the neocortex (new brain) and the limbic system (old brain). While the old brain is instinctual and jumps to quick decisions using the empirical emotional and motivational infrastructure, the resource-hungry new brain needs time to invoke the higher-order cognitive functions to regulate these emotions and weigh in the motivations.

Simply put, a delayed decision helps to generate better alternatives or recognize the decision as unnecessary… Did I say unnecessary?

In a hyper-productivity world obsessed with identifying what’s urgent versus important, we miss a more probable third option – unnecessary.

Found this helpful?

If this article resonated with you, please share it on LinkedIn to help me spread the word on Mindful Productivity.

A quick hack to mindful intelligence? Delay the decision – until tomorrow, next week, or even next year.

If this feels counterintuitive, it’s that the bias for action is a learned behavior, deeply ingrained in us since childhood.

Think back to school: a packed timetable from 10 to 5, stressful environments filled with subjects that didn’t resonate, and constant pressure to stay “on schedule.” Over time, this only numbed our natural inclination to slow down, reflect, and learn from our mistakes.

If delaying a decision – even for a day – feels uncomfortable, start small.

Take a 15-minute stroll without headphones.
Focus on your breathing while being aware of your surroundings.
Return and revisit the decision.

You might be surprised at what happens when you give your brain the gift of time.