Roger D. Fisher (May 28, 1922 – August 25, 2012) was Samuel Williston Professor of Law emeritus at Harvard Law School and director of the Harvard Negotiation Project.
I’ll be honest, I copied and pasted that from his Wikipedia page.
In 1981 he published the following in the ‘Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists’ with reference to the nuclear launch codes the president would have to use to launch a nuclear weapon.
“My suggestion was quite simple: Put that needed code number in a little capsule, and then implant that capsule right next to the heart of a volunteer.
The volunteer would carry with him a big, heavy butcher knife as he accompanied the President. If ever the President wanted to fire nuclear weapons, the only way he could do so would be for him first, with his own hands, to kill one human being.
The President says, “George, I’m sorry but tens of millions must die.” He has to look at someone and realize what death is—what an innocent death is. Blood on the White House carpet. It’s reality brought home.
When I suggested this to friends in the Pentagon they said, “My God, that’s terrible. Having to kill someone would distort the President’s judgement. He might never push the button.”
It seems a bit extreme.
But it makes sense on some level at least.
If you’re willing to kill lots of innocent people, then you’ve got to be willing to kill one.
It’s the removing of that ‘distance’ that makes it so much harder.
Innocent people in some far off land.
Versus an innocent person right in front of you.
Our calmer, more ‘rational’ and calculating ‘cold system’……….
Versus our more intuitive, automatic and reactive ‘hot system’.
Both systems have their place.
Both are important.
And sometimes, increasing or decreasing the ‘distance’ of a decision can help us use another system and make a different decision.
And done correctly, a decision that serves us better.
If there was a slice of cake in front of you, would you want it?
Probably.
If I told you that there’s a guy in Australia who’s unhappy with his body and health and is looking to lose weight and you can chose if he should have a slice of cake today or not, what would you say?
“No” I would guess.
————- You can, of course, replace cake with any food that causes a surplus. We’re not demonising cake, biscuits and the like. They have their place. It’s just often those extras that tip us from deficit through maintenance to surplus ————
Different ‘systems’ at play there.
So if you’re struggling to make the decisions that will take you in the direction you want………
Increase the ‘distance’ from them.
Decide what you’re going to eat tomorrow / the day after / next week and get the appropriate stuff in place.
Much easier to make those better decisions now for then………….
Then it is to make them at Hungry O Clock.
Change the systems in play and how you feel about the decisions.
Change that ‘distance’.
Much love,
Jon ‘Butchers’ Hall and Matt ‘Bowie’ Nicholson
P.S. The next find out more meeting is nearly a month away. But why wait? –> myrise.co.uk/briefing-meeting.
