A way to spot signal lag and uncover where your leadership system is slowing itself down.

Why This?

If NQ is a measure of how efficiently and intelligently a system thinks and moves, then latency (especially decision latency) is often the hidden drag on the entire equation.

Remember the formula: Latency (L) is in the denominator. And it’s squared.

Which means delay isn’t just inconvenient… it’s exponentially costly to the system’s intelligence. This experiment helps you see where that drag is happening, and how you might reduce it.

Step 1: Track Three Decisions

Over the next few days, track three decisions that:

• You’re personally responsible for, or

• You’re observing in your team/system

For each one, write down:

• When did the signal first show up? (email, meeting, insight, conversation)

• When was a decision finally made?

• What happened in between? (Delay? Discussion? Avoidance? Confusion? Waiting for alignment?)

Jot quick bullet notes. Resist overthinking it! :)

Step 2: Identify the Drag

Now look across your three decisions:

Which one had the longest signal-to-action gap?

What type of friction caused the delay?

• Fear of being wrong?

• Waiting on consensus?

• Structural bottleneck?

• Conflicting interpretations?

• Noticing… but not trusting?

Highlight your biggest “latency leak.”

Step 3: Try a Decision Accelerator

Pick one micro-shift to apply this week that reduces decision latency:

Drag Source & Decision Accelerator

Overthinking Ask: “What would we decide if we had to choose in the next 15 minutes?”

Fear of being wrong Say aloud: “Let’s treat this as a 10-day test, not a forever commitment.”

Waiting on consensus Shift to alignment: “Are we aligned enough to try something?”

Confused roles Clarify: “Whose decision is this really, and what’s their next step?”

Lacking trust* Say aloud or journal: “If I were to trust what I already know, what would I do next?”

((*Trust: “noticing… but not trusting” is one of the most subtle and costly forms of decision latency. You see the signal, but something in you, or the system, doesn’t believe it yet. This creates a kind of emotional drag. The reflection (“If I were to trust what I already know, what would I do next?”) surfaces your intuitive intelligence without demanding proof. It brings the implicit into the explicit, making it discussable, testable, and actionable.))

Step 4: Log What Happens

After applying your accelerator, reflect:

• Was the decision better, worse, or about the same?

• How did people feel about the pace?

• What shifted in trust, clarity, or energy?

Optional: Journal your insights. You might ask yourself: What happens when I reduce decision latency in the system I lead?

Final Thought

You can’t remove all latency. Nor should you. But the ability to sense the right moment to move — and move cleanly — is a superpower. This is what it means to lead inside the wave, not after it.