2. Strategic Laziness
Society presents laziness as a lack of ambition or poor character. However, a study published in the Journal of Health Psychology discovered that intelligent people are lazier and that is due to their lengthy attention spans. Intelligent people may seem aloof, appearing “lazy” to the observer but they are actually conserving mental energy. They are mentally automating routines, batching tasks, and avoiding unnecessary effort. Intelligent people do not need to be constantly entertained and can sit in silence and still be mentally stimulated.
This cognitive economy aligns with executive functioning: planning, prioritizing, and controlling attention to reserve effort for high-leverage work. Research also links curiosity and openness with preference for mentally stimulating tasks rather than staying busy for the sake of busyness. Strategic laziness reduces decision fatigue and frees up working memory for complex reasoning. It shows up as templates, checklists, and “no” to meetings without clear outcomes, which raises throughput and quality.Continue reading…
