In this BONUS episode, we explore Captain David Marquet’s latest book “Distancing: How Great Leaders Reframe to Make Better Decisions.” Captain Marquet, renowned for transforming the USS Santa Fe from the worst-performing submarine to the best in the fleet, shares powerful insights on psychological distancing and how stepping outside ourselves can dramatically improve our decision-making abilities.
Make sure you also check the previous episode with Captain Marquet, where we discuss the key lessons from his book: Turn The Ship Around! A very often referred book on the Scrum Master Toolbox Podcast.
The Genesis of Distancing
“What I really needed was people to think, not just comply, not just do what they were told.”
Captain Marquet traces the origins of his distancing concept back to his submarine experience. After realizing that giving orders gave people “a pass on thinking,” he developed a system where crew members would say “I intend to…” instead of waiting for commands. However, he noticed that officers would sometimes make decisions that were good for their department but not optimal for the submarine as a whole. This led him to ask different questions – like having the engineer sit in the captain’s chair and think from that perspective. The breakthrough came when he started asking himself, “What would my six-month-from-now self want me to do today?”
The Three B’s of Better Decision Making
“The problem with your decision making isn’t gathering more market data. The problem is your internal, your egoic biases that just come from the fact that you view the decision from inside your own head.”
Marquet introduces the “3 B’s of better decision making”: Be someone else, be somewhere else, be sometime else. These psychological distancing techniques help overcome the limitations of our “immersed self” – the version of us trapped in immediate pressures, deadlines, and ego-driven concerns. When we distance ourselves temporally (thinking as our future self), socially (thinking as someone else), or spatially (imagining being somewhere else), we access what psychologists call our “distanced self,” which aligns more closely with our ideal self and core values.
The Jeff Bezos Example
“When I’m 80, when am I going to regret more? Am I going to regret trying this idea and failing or not trying the idea?” Continue reading BONUS: Captain David Marquet’s Guide to Becoming Your Own Best Coach
