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1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDavid Lapin’s “Don’t Lose Your Mind,” published on Lapin International’s leadership blog on October 24, 2023, argues that leaders should use data without letting it crowd out intuition, experience, and common sense. The title can be confused with Rujuta Diwekar’s separate nutrition book, Don’t Lose Your Mind, Lose Your Weight; Lapin’s article is about decision-making, not food or weight loss.
What is David Lapin’s “Don’t Lose Your Mind” about?
Lapin’s central point is that data is a tool for judgment, not a replacement for it. He writes that data can help confirm an idea a leader is unsure about, or prompt consideration of an idea that runs counter to familiar experience and intuitive assumptions. He cautions that treating data as the only acceptable basis for a decision can cause leaders to dismiss insights drawn from experience or common sense. Read Lapin’s article.
This is Lapin’s argument in a leadership essay, not a conclusion established by a comparative study in the article. He does not present an empirical test showing that intuitive decisions generally outperform data-backed ones.
Why does Lapin warn against relying on data alone?
Lapin suggests that leaders may favor a data-supported choice even when they believe another option is better, because the data-supported choice can feel safer if the decision is later questioned. His concern is not that evidence has no value; it is that leaders can use it as cover for avoiding responsibility for their own judgment.
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That distinction matters: a decision can be informed by data without being dictated by it. Lapin’s essay asks leaders to notice when evidence is genuinely helping them assess an uncertain idea and when it is being treated as a substitute for making a judgment.
What examples does the article use?
Lapin invokes Einstein, Post-it Notes, and Airbnb as illustrations of ideas associated with hunches or instinct. These are examples in his essay, not independently verified evidence in the article that intuition alone produced the outcomes. They help express his point about making room for ideas that may not begin with a conventional data case, but they do not establish a general rule for business decisions.
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How can a leader apply the argument?
The following is a practical application of Lapin’s thesis, not a framework he tested or presented as a formal method:
- Clarify the decision. State the choice, the outcome you want, and what would count as a costly mistake.
- Check the evidence. Ask whether the available data is relevant to this decision and whether it is strong enough to distinguish between the options.
- Name the judgment call. Record what experience or intuition suggests, and why. Treat that view as a hypothesis to examine rather than proof.
- Look for disagreement. If the evidence and your judgment point in different directions, identify the assumptions behind each before deciding.
- Match the decision to its stakes. Where a mistake would be costly and the evidence is weak, seek more information or use a limited, reversible test if one is practical. Where the choice is hard to reverse, make the reasoning and uncertainty explicit.
This approach does not mean giving intuition equal weight in every situation. It means asking what the evidence can actually establish, what remains uncertain, and where experience contributes information the data may not capture.
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Is this the same work as Don’t Lose Your Mind, Lose Your Weight?
No. Lapin’s “Don’t Lose Your Mind” is a leadership article about data and judgment. Don’t Lose Your Mind, Lose Your Weight is a different work by nutrition author Rujuta Diwekar, about food and weight loss. The shared opening phrase does not indicate a connection between them. Google Play’s listing for Diwekar’s book identifies it as a 2011 Random House India ebook.
Quick Recap
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- Author: Bungay Stanier, Michael.
- Publisher: Page Two
- Pages: 244
- Publication Date: 2016-02-29
- Edition: 1
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