Defy the Hype! Practice Intentional Acts of Intelligence

It's easy to get swept up in the excitement—the drama—that stimulates our Turbo Thinker© brains. Whether it's the latest technology that promises to save humanity or the newest threat that spells our doom, hype steals our attention and, more dangerously, it steals our ability to question what we're being fed.

As Turbo Thinkers©, we possess the strengths of our natural curiosity and tendency to question everything. But in a world of constant stimulation and endless information, even we can fall prey to hype without realizing it.

Why Do We Assume Better Simply Because It's Popular?

I've been thinking a lot about this after coming across an interview with Noam Chomsky about artificial intelligence. He cautions us that "exorbitant and reckless claims, often amplified in the media" require our skepticism. This struck me as precisely the reminder that Turbo Thinkers© need—our job is to question the hype, not absorb it.

Chomsky gives some brilliant examples of the absurdities in our current thinking. He points out how ridiculous it would be to dismiss research into insect navigation (how tiny bugs with minuscule brains navigate vast distances) just because airline pilots can navigate too. Or to ignore how Polynesian sailors navigate across oceans using stars and currents because modern ships have GPS. The methods are completely different, yet one does not make the other invaluable.

This is exactly what happens when people claim AI has "solved" language learning because it can produce human-like text. Children learn language naturally with very little data by age 3-4, while AI systems need trillions of words and massive computing power. They're fundamentally different processes with different implications.

Natural vs. Artificial: More Than Just a Technical Difference

Think about honey versus Sweet'n Low. Turkey versus tofurkey. Reality versus illusion.

Just because something achieves similar results doesn't mean the process is the same or better. There's a fundamental difference between what's natural and what's artificial—not only related to food or technology.

Our natural intelligence, with all its beautiful quirks and imperfections, operates in a radically different way than artificial systems. Ants navigate without GPS. Sea turtles find their way back to specific beaches after years at sea. Migratory birds cross continents with pinpoint accuracy. These creatures aren't using algorithms or big data—they're using evolved intelligence that we're still trying to understand.

Common Sense Isn't So Common

What about "common sense"? We throw this term around as if it's universal, but common sense varies wildly depending on our values, upbringing, biases, and experiences.

My new back neighbor thought he employed common sense when he had six mature trees removed. He saw hazards—potential roof damage, liability risks, his future swimming pool sullied with leaves. His common sense said, "Cut them down!" I saw vital shade that reduces energy costs for the entire block, privacy between properties, and essential habitat for songbirds and pollinators. My common sense said, "Preserve them at all costs!" We are both prioritizing different values.

We've seen this play out with diet trends too. Remember when fat-free was the "obvious" solution to health problems? Then suddenly full-fat was in and carbs were the enemy. Vegan diets are promoted as optimal, then carnivore diets emerge claiming evolutionary superiority. Each trend arrives with passionate advocates and seemingly compelling science. The "common sense" of nutrition has flip-flopped repeatedly.

The Turbo Thinker's© Natural Advantages

This is where Turbo Thinkers© shine. Our strength lies in exploring and gathering bits of random data, rearranging it all like a collage, and creating new meanings and understandings. We're naturally skeptical, questioning what others accept without thought.

I think of my client Craig, a programmer in an exciting, fast-growing IT company who felt bored and stuck. During our coaching sessions, he described feeling like "a cog in a machine controlled by others." I reflected back that it sounded like he felt like an NPC—a character in a video game not controlled by a player but by the game master.

This resonated deeply with him. He shared that many of his colleagues seemed content with this role, but he wanted out. He wanted to break free and control his own life.

Craig's Turbo Thinking© led him to question the hype around his supposedly dream job. He found ways to execute his work tasks in just 4-5 hours per week, using the rest of his time to develop his own business. By giving himself permission to explore new opportunities, he eventually launched what would become his new full-time career. His intentional act of intelligence, defying the hype of the tech company, allowed him to direct his time and energy toward what actually mattered to him.

Practicing Intentional Acts of Intelligence

So what does it mean to practice intentional acts of intelligence as a Turbo Thinker©?

It means pausing before accepting what's put in front of you. It means observing patterns and contradictions. It means questioning not just the information but the framing, the assumptions, the unstated premises.

It doesn't have to be all or nothing. Just as we might use prepackaged seasoning on natural whole foods, we can combine helpful tools with our natural thinking processes. But we need to stay in the driver's seat of our turbo charged brain.

This might feel unfamiliar to us at first—not because it's difficult (it actually plays to our natural strengths), but because we've been trained to doubt those strengths. We've been told our questioning nature is disruptive rather than insightful, our pattern-seeking is scattered rather than creative.

It's easier to consume the fast food of artificial entertainment than to prepare the home-cooked meal of deep thinking. But we were built for this. Our Turbo Thinking mind was designed to question, explore, and rearrange ideas into new patterns.

The Difference Between Wisdom and Intelligence

Intelligence is the ability to learn, understand, or deal with new situations. Wisdom is the ability to discern inner qualities and relationships—to exercise good judgment based on knowledge, experience, and insight.

Artificial intelligence might process information faster than we can, but can artificial wisdom exist? Do we want that instead of the natural wisdom that comes from lived experience, from the wisdom of the trees, of the earth, of our collective human journey?

As Turbo Thinkers©, we have an opportunity to tap into our rebel spirit. Not to reject technology or progress, but to refuse to believe everything we're fed without examination. To pause, observe, and question. To spot the natural intelligence and wisdom that surrounds us already.

Time to Question

• What areas of "hype" currently consume your attention? How might you direct your natural curiosity toward examining rather than simply consuming these narratives?
  

• When was the last time your questioning mind led you to an insight others missed? What became possible because you saw a pattern nobody else noticed?
  

• What small, intentional act of intelligence could you practice today that honors your natural thinking style?
  

Questioning isn't just something we’re good at—it's something the world desperately needs us to do. Our ability to see connections, challenge assumptions, and imagine alternatives isn't a distraction. It's our gift.

Let's defy the hype together.