I’ve had multiple conversations throughout the years about intuition. A recent one went like this: “Do you have any advice for me? I can’t seem to decide on one thing or another. It’s like I’ll sit in front of the screen, and getting started is impossible.” This was coming from a friend who is a very creative, non-linear thinker.
I thought about whether decision making from a rational (theoretic) perspective made sense as advice. It didn’t — at least not for her. Instead, the first thing that came to mind was intuition. How is it that we can feel time, space (or place), and intention sync up, but we don’t necessarily act upon it? I’d argue it’s an overactive mind trying to optimize every small decision we make. It’s the analytical mind wrestling control away from the intuitive being. Sometimes, we may not even feel our intuition: It fails to emerge from a subconscious place to an activated (conscious) state that can inform decisions.
For the past two years, I’ve been embarking on the startup process as a solo entrepreneur, and I’ve often reflected on my own sense of intuition. When there are seemingly unlimited options in front of me, which one should I take? When there is so much uncertainty, what is a “good” option vs. a “better” one? Which option has the best ROI? Which one would I enjoy the most in terms of experience? Do I even have sound intuition that can be relied upon?
The process of starting a company, as well as the recent conversation with my friend, got me thinking about intuition and its social science foundations. In this new series of short videos, I’ll share my thoughts on intuition, personality, and decision making, particularly as they apply to work. This line of inquiry goes hand-in-hand with my startup, Substep, which helps people think about and act on work problems using soft skills and character building techniques.
You might be thinking about how this is all related to AI. Well, part of being human is obviously to feel and to rely on intuition. I’ve seen LLMs adopt empathy and reason through complex issues, but I’m not so sure about organic emotional state as a driver for decision making. This is a thread I’m interested in exploring as I pick up some new R&D for my startup project.
What do you think? Have you seen intuition work in AI yet? If so, where? If not, where do you think it could materialize?
By the way, my friend said that the advice on intuition was spot-on for her.
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