[jvanderbot]

We all three of us understood this differently.

I heard the old "Thinking fast and slow" dichotomy all over: You have snap impulses, and you have the ability to override them if you recognize them. Also "elephant and rider" from Haidt's books.

A fireman spends time training his "elephant" (impulses) to be helpful in fire situations, first by overcoming his impulse for fear in the face of fire.

This takes time.

A person who is predisposed to contemplation might appear smarter on tests or be smarter in actuality (see TFA), but that doesn't have much to do with someone who has faced and conquered their fearful impulses enough that they are dampened.