Some of the smartest shortcuts in life are also the most understated ones, and they involve little changes in where you look and what you ignore.
Come back from another angle
It’s hard to get some people to be honest sometimes. Brilliant people know that, and that’s why they’ll always ask the question twice in different ways when they want the truth. People usually answer differently when you word the question differently. That can help you notice inconsistencies. For example, try asking a coworker, ‘Did you finish the report on Friday?’
They might say that, yes, they did. Then, later on, ask them, ‘What day did you actually finish writing the report?’ and they might tell you it was Monday. It doesn’t mean you’re accusing the other person of lying. Instead, you’re approaching the same fact twice to expose a misunderstanding or a fuzzy memory. You’re figuring out where you both stand, and that’s okay.
Find the choke point
We all have those moments when completing a project feels like a lot, and we feel tempted to fix everything. Don’t give in to it. Smart people look for the part that’s holding the rest up, aka the bottleneck, and they focus on fixing that.
They know that the slowest point limits what the whole system can do. So, they put all their energy into fixing that first. The rest may not need much attention at all, and that’ll save them a lot of effort.
Put the request at the end
When smart people want another person to agree to a request, they’ll put it at the end. They’ll start with the reason, and then give the request. Take, for example, asking to leave early from work. Brilliant people will ask, ‘I have a doctor’s appointment. Can I leave work early?’ instead of ‘Can I leave work early? I have a doctor’s appointment.’
That seems like a small change, but it really does matter. It gives the other person a reason to consider your request before they decide how to respond. There’s no guarantee of a yes, of course. But it does make the request feel more reasonable.
Follow what gets rewarded
Brilliant people will never take someone’s explanation at face value. No, they first look at what the other person gets from the situation, as they recognize that incentives change a person’s behavior all the time.
A salesperson, for example, gets commission. A manager will get rewarded for cutting costs. That’s why these smart people always take the time to check the reward structure before they decide to accept the explanation or not.
Stop filling every gap
Silence is one of those things that makes everyone uncomfortable fast. That’s exactly why people rush to fill it, but only smart people understand how useful it can be. They’ll ask a question and get the answer, then wait a little instead of immediately jumping in.
They know that a pause of a few seconds can lead to more thoughtful decision-making and better joint outcomes. But that doesn’t mean you need to stare someone down or anything. Just remember that you don’t have to answer your own question for them, and you can wait in that discomfort to get them talking.
Make the first draft do overtime
It’s funny how useful one decent piece of work can actually be. Turns out, it can help fuel a ridiculous amount of other work, just so long as you stop treating each format as its own brand-new task. You could turn a webinar into a short article, three clips, an email, and a quote graphic, for example.
They’ll have the same core thinking, and the only difference is the packaging. It’s something that companies call ‘content reuse,’ but the idea itself works far beyond just marketing. Perhaps you could turn a lesson into homework. Do the hard thinking once, then squeeze more out of it.
Rent the knowledge
There comes a point when saying, ‘I’ll learn how to do it myself’ becomes very expensive. An accountant might be able to solve your tax question in 30 minutes, but you’ll have to spend two weekends researching to figure it out yourself.
It’s the same story with lawyers and developers, as well as many other specialists. Brilliant people understand that it’s sometimes better to buy access to expertise, rather than spending months learning around the problem.
Purchase fewer irritating minutes
It sure feels good getting a nicer version of something you already own. But truly great people know that it’s better to remove the same annoyance every week. They’ll pay for a grocery delivery and a cleaner twice a month, rather than a nicer couch or car.
It’s all because they understand that spending money on time-saving services can make them happier in the long run. Spending on material things feels good temporarily. The truth is, though, the smartest purchase is sometimes buying back an hour you keep losing.
Ask for the exception
Brilliant people hear that things are impossible sometimes, too, just like the rest of us. What sets them apart is that they refuse to leave it there. Take, for example, when they’re staying at a hotel and the receptionist says that check-in doesn’t start until 3 p.m. Smart people will always ask for the exception first.
They’ll ask whether the hotel has any rooms ready earlier. It sounds simple, but it’s a really useful life hack that tends to work best with things like cancellation fees and deadlines. Not every rule is as strict as it seems. There’s no harm in politely asking about the exception instead of accepting something at face value.
Make the other person give the first number
Whenever brilliant people are going to buy or sell something, they’ll follow one key life hack. They don’t say the price first. If they’re selling something, they’ll ask what the other person is willing to pay, rather than setting the baseline themselves.
If they’re the buyer, they’ll wait for the seller to suggest a number first. This sort of trick is really useful during negotiations because you may not be aware of what something’s worth to the other person. Let them make it clear to you first.
Protect the expensive decision
Timing matters a lot, especially when it comes to difficult or big decisions. You shouldn’t leave them until later on. No, put the hardest decision earlier in the day because then you won’t be exhausted when you’re making it.
You won’t have the stresses of the day weighing on you, and your brain tends to be the clearest right at the beginning. You’ll find it hard to make a difficult call after an hour of emails, scheduling, tabs, and minor admin.
Remove one tiny obstacle
Practically everyone has goals. What sets brilliant people apart is that they’ll take one physical step to make their desired behavior easier. Take, for example, someone who wants to read more. They won’t put the book neatly back on the shelf, but they’ll leave it on the couch.
It’s mildly in the way when it’s on the couch, and that encourages them to pick it up. It’s a trick that works with almost any goal in life because tiny obstacles matter more than they seem. Brilliant people use that fact to their advantage.
Give yourself a fake deadline
You have a deadline coming up on Friday, so surely that means you have until then to finish it. That’s what you might tell yourself, yet smart people do things differently. They’ll pretend that Wednesday is the deadline instead.
It gives them an extra day to deal with anything that might go wrong. These sorts of people will give themselves a fake deadline that they try their hardest to stick to, so they don’t have to scramble at the last minute.
Sources: Please see here for a complete listing of all sources that were consulted in the preparation of this article.
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