When To HALT DECISIONS

When To HALT DECISIONS

Borrowing this cover page from reknown Australian transformation coach and author Emma Queen, what her cover tells us when we're either HUNGRY, ANGRY, LONELY or TIRED, that is the time for us to HALT DECISIONS.  Results from studies show that we should avoid making important decisions on an empty stomach, literally speaking as that hunger significantly altered people's decision-making, making them impatient and more likely to settle for a small reward that arrives sooner than a larger one promised at a later date📗📙📘

There was an experiment designed by neuroscientists wherein respondents were asked questions relating to food, money, and other rewards when satiated and again when they had skipped a meal.  The results show that while it was NOT surprising that hungry people were more likely to settle for smaller food incentives that arrived sooner, the researchers found that being hungry actually changes preferences for rewards entirely unrelated to food.  So, there was a large effect on people's preferences💴💵💷

That study indicates that a reluctance to defer gratification may carry over into other kinds of decision, even on financial and interpersonal ones.  So, it is really imperative for us to be aware that hunger might affect our preferences in ways we DON'T necessarily anticipate or predict.  There is even a lurking danger for people experiencing hunger due to poverty may make decisions that entrench their situation💎💎💎

Emma Queen's studies went a step farther than those researches because she highlighted that besides being hungry, even anger, loneliness or being tired are factors that are as impactful to decisions as being hungry.  Further, the studies show that there was a large effect as people's preferences shifted dramatically from the long-term to the short-term when hungry❎❎❎

These results fit well into a larger effort in psychology to map the factors that influence our DECISION MAKING.  This potentially empowers people as they may foresee and mitigate the effects of being HUNGRY, ANGRY, LONELY or TIRED.  Those are the times when we should HALT DECISIONS, holding it in abeyance❗❗❗