“Always cut the deck if it ups your odds.” I forget exactly where this is from, but I think it’s from a Robert A. Heinlein book. What it means is, if your back is against the wall, do something. (Almost) anything. Even if you don’t know the ins and outs of possible repercussions, you might do something that can help you out.
In Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card, the titular character is ambushed in the showers of the Battle School by a bully named Bonzo. Ender slyly manipulates the vain Bonzo into fighting him one-on-one, but knows he will probably get ruined. As they exchange dramatic banter, Ender turns on all the showers in the bathroom to maximum heat. “I’m not afraid of hot water,” Bonzo says. But the steam makes Ender sweat. Between that and the soap on his body, he becomes a slippery fish. Bonzo wants to throw Ender into a toilet, but when he tries, he can’t get a solid grip and becomes vulnerable. Ender beats him senseless. A lot of good not being afraid of hot water does.
I am big on real-life examples of things, so take a gander at seth godin add some brackets, a blog post by fear.less contributor Seth Godin. Unexpected punctuation to distract someone from getting intimidated by the daring idea – wily, right?
Both of these examples have calculation in them, they’re not truly random. Rarely will you be in a situation where your actions, much less that one that saves your skin, comes out of completely nowhere. The point is there are a lot of little things with unpredictable effects that, especially if you have the disadvantage in a situation, might be helpful to introduce. The other point is that they are introduced by action, by making them so. As fear.less contributors Bernard Lown and Paul Ekman claim, action can go a long way to reducing fear, but it may also coincidentally defeat it outright. You choose to say the weird thing at what turns out to be the right time, or put just the right spin or quirk into a presentation that makes it pop. And in times of great antagonism, you may even the playing field by creating a situation that your opposition did not anticipate dealing with – making the natures of ideas and people more clear.
Don’t be a seventh-grader about it, but keep it in mind. Some balances are best tipped by fate.
