The Cost of Skipping the Thinking

The Cost of Skipping the Thinking A lesson from a math problem that keeps showing up at work Read this Medium article on how to simplify a mathematical expression (see image below). I found it interesting not only for how you solve it, but for how it applies to so many areas of your personal and professional life. From a mathematical standpoint, the author's point is this: "…This solution isn't about algebraic muscle. It's about structural awareness. Most learners approach problems like this asking: 'What operation do I apply next?' Experts ask a different question: 'What shape is this expression trying to be?'…" In a nutshell: don't try to compute immediately. Try to recognize a pattern, apply it, and everything simplifies by itself. In this specific case, you should spot the square of a difference and let it do the work. Generalizing, this habit of rushing to solve a problem without taking the time to think it through is something I see over and over again in my professional life, to the point of it feeling like a plague. We jump straight into solving mode without identifying the variables at stake, understanding what output is actually required, and asking how the problem can be simplified. Sometimes we reach the same result with significantly more effort than needed; other times we don't get the right answer at all, or worse, we answer the wrong question. As Einstein reportedly put it: "If I had an hour to solve a problem, I'd spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions." https://medium.com/think-art/the-harvard-entry-exam-a-test-of-thinking-not-memory-46c8969939ea

- Pedro

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