Power of System-1

I often used to end up doubting if I had really locked my house when I left to work. That doubt would sometimes plague me for the whole day. Sometimes I would ride more than a mile back, to go back to verify, just to save myself from the feeling of doubt for the whole day. On such occassions, not even once I had left the house without locking it. The doubt was only because, locking the door, had become such a ‘subsoncious’ work that I was not paying attention to locking the door, as my mind was busy in its ‘default mode network (mind-wandering)’.

Daniel Kahneman in his book, ‘Thinking, fast and slow’ (must read for decision makers) says that there are two systems of processing our thoughts: System-1 and System-2. System-1 operates automatically and quickly, with little or no effort and no sense of voluntary control. System 2 allocates attention to the effortful mental activities that demand it, including complex computations.

Equipped with this knowledge of behavioural psychology, I decided I would slap myself just before locking the door, thereby becoming aware, and thus making the locking process, work of my System-2.

It worked beutifully for many days. I would be sure that I had locked the door.

After a few weeks, one day, I found myself again doubting if I had locked the house, though this time I had quaint memory that I had slapped myself hard couple of times!