A few years ago, I read an article about split-second decisions. It was about a tragic car accident in North Carolina. Two young men were racing down a major street at midnight. Oblivious to the fact that there would be other drivers on the road even at midnight, they raced down at a very high speed. Unbeknownst to the fact that there was another car turning at an intersection, they continued to race in the same direction until it was too late.

They crashed into the car at the intersection. This resulted in a violent crash where the turning car was cut in half, and the bodies were ejected in different directions.

North Carolina is known for stock car racing. In the majority of the cases, the race is never planned. It is, most often, a split-second decision made while sitting in the spotlight.

Be it a bet, an off-the-cuff challenge, or somebody trying to prove the power of their car, or their manhood, the initial igniting spark often resulted in a split-second decision that ended in tragedy.

On the other hand, split-second decisions can sometimes save lives as well. Not long ago, a 17-year-old girl was carjacked at gunpoint by a woman in Wildwood, New Jersey. “Drive, or I will kill you and your family.” Said the woman holding the gun. The woman wanted the girl to drive her to the home of the parents who were chosen to adopt a newborn baby instead of this woman. Because she could not take no for an answer, she decided to take matters into her own hands.

While the 17-year-old girl was driving, she noticed a police cruiser pulled over on the shoulder. The girl realized that the woman was planning something violent so it was now or never to make a split decision.

So, the girl steered her car toward the cruiser and rammed into it, which got the officer’s attention, leaving the kidnapper stunned. The girl leaped out of the car as quickly as she could. The woman was arrested on carjacking, kidnapping, and weapons charges, sentencing her to 12 years in prison.

When you look at these two incidents, you realize the criticality of split decisions and how judgment, or lack thereof, plays a significant role.

“The concept of being judgmental is often looked at in a bad light. On the contrary, judgment is something to be leveraged for the benefit of decision-making and taking appropriate actionable steps. It is the process of judging that you adopt that makes all the difference.”

~Krescon Coaches

The Distanced Drone Decisions

Being judgmental is a good thing if you know how to use it. Would you say, people are judgmental based on what they see and hear? Yes, that’s true but that’s the wrong way to do it. Sometimes, even reading a biased news article can steer you in the wrong direction.

So, what is the right way to be judgmental, be it about people, a situation, or even yourself?

Brydon: “Two US Marines. Dead. And one US Army Gump, destroyed.”

Harp: “I made the call that felt most correct given the intel available…”

Brydon: “Available at the time… we know.”

Harp: “With all due respect, captain, with 40 men on the ground, I saved 38, including Master Sergeant Miller and his convoy.”

Brydon: “If Miller had been given the chance, he would’ve tried to save all 40. But you took that option away from him.”

Fellow officer: “When did you do your basic?”

Harp: “Three years ago. Paris Island.”

Fellow officer: “Have you ever experienced a mass-casualty encounter, other than from behind your screen? Have you spent time in a conflict zone, Lieutenant Harp?”

Harp: “No, ma’am, but I—”

Fellow officer: “Thank you, lieutenant. Here’s your deployment drive.”

‘Outside the Wire’ is a Sci-Fi Action movie that portrays the protagonist, Harp, as a drone pilot. Harp is shown disobeying a direct order and firing a missile to protect a total of 40 soldiers in a war zone area that was being attacked from all sides. Despite being told to stand down and not fire the missile, Harp noticed an incoming and unidentified armored truck that was approaching the soldiers at high speed. He requested permission to engage and fire a missile at the vehicle which he deemed to be a threat but his request was denied. However, a few seconds later, Harp notices that the truck is about to launch an attack on the soldiers. So, he ignores Captain Brydon’s decision to stand down, and instead, fires the missile. As a result, he saves 38 soldiers but gets two army soldiers killed in crossfire, considering them as collateral damage.

If you also pay attention to what Sofiya (a character who comes later in the movie) tells Harp. She conveys to him that his decisions are not affected in silos but create a rippled effect based on the role he plays as a Drone Pilot.

Sofiya walks over to Harp overlooking many orphaned children playing in a camp.

Sofiya: “How does it feel to see your work up close?”

Harp: “My work?”

Sofiya: “Yeah. Most of these kids weren’t orphaned by the civil war. Your bombs destroyed their homes.”

Lieutenant Harp judged his action of firing the missile to be fair and accurate. He considered saving 38 soldiers out of 40 to be a just decision. However, he was also ordered to not make the strike. Yet, he did, which caused two 19-year-old soldiers to lose their lives.

Was Lieutenant Harp’s split decision the right decision? What was the source of his judgment – fear, Pressure, or neutrality? I leave that up to you to decide.

It is easy to make decisions when you are not caught up in the crossfires of chaos. But that does not mean that the decisions made are right or wrong. However, the process of judging the situation is what makes a difference.

So, how does one become a judge of their life, their decisions, and so on?

A leader too must make the right judgment of himself or herself, or of the business decisions they have to make. Therefore, not being judgmental is a concept we must revisit.

Let us remove the equation of being judgmental as someone who looks at things from a negative perspective. Let us not be judgmental from a pessimistic angle, but rather, hold our process of judgment as sacred. Self-judgment is a good thing when you look at yourself from a neutral perspective graced with self-awareness and not polluted by emotions or other heavily influential elements.

“Only when you judge yourself accurately can you grow as a person.”

~Krescon Coaches

The Two Trusted Pillars of Neutral Judgment

“There is no neutrality. There is only greater or lesser awareness of one’s bias.”

~Phyllis Rose

We must judge ourselves and the situations around us from the Ground of Neutrality but also from the point of self-awareness. These are the two trusted pillars of neutral judgment. Only then can we truly allow ourselves to make decisions that are not inherently inhuman or overly emotional.

Indeed, there is only greater or lesser awareness of one’s bias. This is because we carry inherent biases, shaped by our upbringing, culture, experiences, and personal beliefs. These biases influence how we perceive the world, make decisions, and interact with others. While some people believe that they are objective, at some point they are unconsciously influenced by their biases.

However, those with greater awareness can actively work to mitigate their influence, while others may be completely oblivious to their own prejudices.

Therefore, increasing your Spiritual Quotient or SiQ will help increase your awareness and sharpen your Ground of Neutrality in the right direction. Self-judgment then becomes an act of improvement, and not that of being condescending or bigoted.

Therefore, let us not treat judgment as the enemy, but rather as a trusted comrade in decision-making. Here is a short poem by Vironika Wilde that I read that is quite insightful of the negativity we attribute through our thoughts and judgment.

I think I fear

Other people’s

Judgment, but

What I fear most is

My own self-judgment

Masquerading as

The thoughts I put

Into others’ heads.