A short podcast (Heroic Plus One) by Brian Johnson addressing the fear of making wrong decisions. The episode emphasizes choosing action over paralysis — "attack and adapt" — and references Darren Donnelly, Teddy Roosevelt, Phil Stutz's "Instinct cycle," and John Boyd's OODA Loop as frameworks that reward fast, iterative decision-making.
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Hi, this is Brian. Welcome back to another Heroic Plus One. In our last several Plus Ones, we've been chatting about the seven fears we must conquer. As per Darren Donnelly's great sports fable, victory favors the fearless. It's time to talk about how to deal with the fear of making the wrong decision. Let's get straight to work. Darren tells us, and I quote, what's more important than the decision you make is your attitude and your effort after it's made. That's what determines your results. The person with the most aggressive attitude and the most relentless effort usually wins. He continues by saying, here's a simple fact of life. Most problems can be solved quickly by simply attacking them hard and adapting to whatever happens next. When problems arise, don't sit back and passively hope they go away. Attack your problems with aggression. Aggressively find the solution. Attack and adapt to whatever is going on. Attack and adapt. Attack and adapt. The person with this mindset usually wins. Now, as you may have noticed, when we get caught up in this fear, we become indecisive and timid and weak. In this context, Darren quotes Teddy Roosevelt, who told us, in any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing. Attack and adapt. Attack and adapt. Attack and adapt. That's how we deal with the fear of making the wrong decision. I repeat, attack and adapt. Attack and adapt. Attack and adapt. Phil Stutz talks about something similar. He calls it the Instinct cycle. He tells us that when we need to make a decision, we need to trust our instincts on what the right next step is. Then we need to decide what we're going to do. Then we need to take action. Then we need to be prepared to, to accept the consequences of that decision. Then we repeat the process. Phil says the best decision maker isn't the one who makes the best decisions per se. It's the one who makes the most decisions or the one who's going through that cycle the most and the fastest. Which reminds me of the OODA Loop. O O D a you know what that is? As Wikipedia tells us, the OODA loop is the Cycle, Observe, Orient, Decide, Act. Developed by military strategist and United States Air Force colonel John Boyd. Now, it was originally developed by a fighter pilot for fighter pilots and it's applicable to all of us. The basic idea. The fighter pilot or aspiring hero who can go through the observe, Orient, decide, act steps of the Ooda Loop. The fastest is the one most likely to win. So don't be afraid of making the wrong decision. Attack and adapt. Attack and adapt. Attack and adapt. Not someday. Today.
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