Intuition - A Critical Problem Solving Faculty

A true story.

A racing driving approached a blind corner at 150 mph. He couldn’t see what was round the bend.  He had been around this corner many times that day, so he had no reason to be apprehensive.  Suddenly he was overcome by an overwhelming sensation - he needed brake IMMEDIATELY.  He came slowly round the corner and saw a car crash in the centre of the track.  If he had not slowed down he would have undoubtedly have had a head-on collision. 

Inexplicably, when asked why he slowed down, he could not give a reason; he just intuitively knew that he had to stop.  Did he have some rare psychic gift, was it ESP? 

No.

After the race he watched the recording of the event.  He saw himself approaching the corner, and everything seemed normal, there was no apparent reason to brake.  Subsequent replays showed that the crowd weren’t behaving normally.  Usually when a car approaches a corner the crowd watches its progress. This time they were not.  The crowd was watching events taking place at the crash site.  The approaching driver did not consciously notice this; however, his unconscious mind did notice and immediately warned the driver.  At no time during the event did he spot the unusual behaviour of the crowd. 

Intuition is a little understood phenomenon.  Undoubtedly, it saved the driver that day, when his conscious faculties let him down.  As rational beings, we like to think that our conscious intellect will cope with life’s challenges.

Sometimes, being rational is not sufficient.