<p>(Hi all. Please do me a favor and grade my SAT practice essay. Please do grade on a scale of 1-6, as the SAT graders do. Please do not hesitate to point out mistakes as well as advice on how I can improve my work. I have typed it verbatim)</p>
<p>Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment below.</p>
<p>People usually assume that the quality of a decision is directly related to the time and effort that went into making it. We believe that we are always better off gathering as much information as possible and then spending as much time as possible analyzing that information. But there are times when making a quick judgment is the best thing to do. Decisions made quickly can be as good as decisions made slowly and cautiously.
Adapted from Malcolm Gladwell, Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking</p>
<p>Assignment:</p>
<p>Are decisions made quickly just as good as decisions made slowly and carefully? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.</p>
<hr>
<p>Since its beginnings time has been the heartless entity that waits for no man. In our times, this only becomes more pronounced. Each day, fortunes are made and lost in a matter of mere seconds and more than ever, the need arises for us to think about the manner in which we make our decisions.</p>
<p>Every day, we see all sorts of decisions being made around us. Some of these decisions are well-considered and cautiously weighed. Others are spontaneous, or even instinctive. It goes without saying of course, that a man is far more likely to err in his spontaneous judgement than if he were to make a cautious and careful decision. The splendor and opulence of the Las Vegas Strip casinos is a fitting testament to the weak decisions of men and women whose greed and temptation cloud their faculties for careful judgement.</p>
<p>Hasty decisions may occasionally produce favorable results, but more often than not, these successful choices are a convergence of chance, luck and instinct. It is a sad fact of life however, that Lady Luck never sticks by anyones side. Initial triumphs based on chance and instinct often result in a net negative effect, because people who achieve successful results in hasty decisions convince themselves that they are blessed with extraordinary instincts or that they have an invisible hand guiding their decisions. In reality, neither is true. </p>
<p>It is often the case that when one makes quick but effective decision without much consideration that the decision set forth is a very clear-cut choice. Another possibility is that the decision maker capitalizes on the mistakes or the collective experience of others who had been confronted with the same choices in the past. In such cases, making a quick decision is beneficial because unnecessary consideration might cause one to bring up imagined or negligible factors of judgement.</p>
<p>In conclusion, one must note that while in most cases, a well-considered and carefully thought out decision is the best, there exist some situations in which the circumstances permit one to make a quick yet effective judgement.</p>