Ask HN: Slow thinkers, how do you compensate for your lack of quick-wittedness?

> You're just allowed to be silly, have fun and be in the moment.

That's still allowed outside of improv!

> my ability to socialize, memorise things and general mood has improved exponentially

But that does sound like a good outcome of your improv experience, definitely.

This is exactly the reason all meetings should have an agenda posted beforehand. Not everyone is able to make decisions on the fly, they need the chance to prepare first.

> Agree - I find that I never really have a good answer on the spot, but I often have already been thinking about the problems around the workplace for long enough that I at least have a hunch or opinion. That's not quick-wit, it's just pre-thinking. But it works well enough for me.

I did debating in school and a lot of the prep was like this too — once you have your position sketched out, you put on your 'opposition hat' and start to critique your own position for holes.

Also, where in the HN guidelines it says — Please respond to the strongest plausible interpretation of what someone says, not a weaker one that's easier to criticize. Assume good faith. — when you're prepping, you tend to do just the opposite: assume that someone _is_ going to attempt to respond to a weaker version that's easier to criticize.

It can help you have a rebuttal on the ready if needed but regardless it also helps you to distill/reframe ideas in a way that's clearer from the outset (which is a good thing in & of itself, even if you don't have someone taking a counter position)

This is something that's easy to have an opinion on so you're going to get buried.

I'll do my best to make a high-signal comment here, but it will be drowned by all the other replies, which also likely touch on these points.

First, "slow-thinking" is really just a different way of expressing your thinking and you should begin by leaning into it rather than leaning away. Take time, allow yourself to pause to collect your thoughts. People often interpret quietness (not filler) as intelligence and maturity (because usually it is). Alternatively not answering is also valid.

Second, as a person who is generally regarded as quick-witted and sharp, most of that sharpness comes from either having a few pre-known responses to ideas or anxiously revising situations in my head ahead of time. This is, generally, a bad thing because it means I have made decisions on how I will respond to things without all of the information (as some will come over during conversation). Methodically thinking things through, fresh, is probably the only realistic way to be open minded.

Finally, do your best to avoid situations where a "quick decision" is needed; this is good advice even for "quick thinkers". Fast decisions are often poor ones - the counterpoint to that is dragging something out over many weeks or across many meetings - but putting yourself in a situation where the unknowns become knowns or the scope of the landscape and weight of the decision can be properly assessed is important. What's better is that you will likely be able to have a better paper trail for this.

One absolutely final piece of advice: Avoid using the word "slow", use "deliberate" instead.

There is nothing special or impressive about quick wittedness. I have at times had moments of whit that has led to achievements, but when reflecting on the outcomes, the whit alone was nothing compared to everything else that unfolded after. To me, people who are quick to throw out "whit", are:

- Not paying attention and thinking about what THEY can say next - Are not listening/respecting the room. - Typically not asking the "right questions" and pushing shit forward to be "cool"...

I would avoid over indexing here and instead aim for skills like, Active Listening, Making Space (for thinking too), Cooperative Collaboration. When I deploy these over whit, my products and teams succeed more often.

The last crunchy thing I'll say here- which I say here all the time. This is a symptom of our modern world/social media. Don't fall prey. We see people all around us throwing out ideas, projecting success... It's all BS. Amplified by the platforms.