Mr. Wellington, the CEO, was having an interview lunch with Mr. Jones, the leading candidate for the company’s number-two position. When the main course was served, Mr. Jones immediately sprinkled salt and pepper on his meal.
“I’m sorry,” said Mr. Wellington, “but you’re not right for the job. You seasoned your meal without tasting it first. That tells me that you make hasty decisions without first examining the situation.”
Not long thereafter, Mr. Jones was a multi-millionaire running a successful startup. Part of his success was his ability to make quick decisions when faced with a situation that he’d already encountered hundreds of times. Meanwhile, Wellington’s company had tanked, due mainly to his habit of making spurious conclusions based on data unrelated to the problem at hand.