In a conversation with my former shrink we were discussing the fact that most school administrators in Texas fell in the Sensing/Judging rank on the Meyers-Briggs scale (which most would consider a useful descriptive but not diagnostic tool, but many SJ’s would embrace verbatim on the spot if it sounded right) and how this disadvantaged many deliberative and bright children. He shared the example of a conference lecture where he described the model of deliberative thinkers who hesitate to render judgment before they have all the facts in their possession. An attendee who held a supervisory position interrupted to suggest he knew exactly the people Dan was speaking of and they couldn’t be trusted. Hesitation, he suggested, was a certain sign of deceit because these people “needed time to get their stories straight and cover their asses.”

When asked for the basis of his conclusion, the man answered, “I don’t need a reason, I can just see it. Honest people don’t need time to tell you straight. They already know.”

There are moments when you have to pull the trigger without thinking, but if the collision isn’t impending it never hurts to reflect, even on topics you’ve visited before. New information may have come to light of which you were unaware.