Game in the Brain

Running a game as a GM, especially with smarter-than-average characters, is a fascinating exercise in thinking about what intelligence really is. It’s almost like hacking your own empathy—pretending to be smarter by predicting what a more informed person would do. You create an abstraction of how they would behave, using what you know about people who are smarter or more knowledgeable than you. It’s not just about acting; it’s about imagining the decision-making process of someone with greater insight.

Lately, I’ve been playing a character like that. And it’s got me thinking, “How would a more informed person approach this problem?” I often picture my grandfather licking his dry lips, pulling out his notebook, and methodically thinking through the situation. His way of solving problems was slow but thorough, gathering facts before acting. That methodical approach reminds me of a lot of my mentors.

Sir Boy, for instance, would always talk about key engineering principles, anchoring everything in real-world practices. Sir Quiloy would grab a whiteboard, breaking down processes and isolating the systems. Sir Rudolfo, on the other hand, would recall stories from his work with Megaworld, outlining how they tackled complex projects step by step. My uncle Lilet—who honestly seemed like a character out of a noir film—was excellent at reading people, predicting how they might deceive or cut corners. And then there’s my mom, who approaches everything like a scientist, focusing on fundamental forces like time and money—both the limits and opportunities they create.

It’s not just the engineers and family, either. Senior executives, auditors, and directors approach the company’s finances like doctors examining a patient—money is the most tangible truth in business, after all. HR and QMS folks focus on tweaking systems and processes, talking about reordering steps or inputs to reduce risks. And then there’s sales, where I’ve heard countless stories of projects running into trouble, only to be salvaged with a mix of quick thinking, deflection, and real solutions.

To a student—or really anyone trying to grow—these mental models are gold. You want to act smarter than you really are, jump into projects that might be out of your depth, but you can lean on the experiences of those who came before you. It’s about letting yourself mentally ‘virtualize’ your mentors. When you know them well enough, their voices are in your head as you solve problems, guiding you with lessons learned long ago.

That’s how we get better—by internalizing those voices until they become part of our own decision-making process. Every problem we face becomes a collective effort of our past experiences and the wisdom of those we’ve learned from.

I know my kids take on my core values – particularly my intolerance for BS. And how we believe we fight and advocate for others so that someone will fight and advocate for us.