One morning, while flying back to base after a night mission in Afghanistan, Justin “Hasard” Lee saw ropes of bright light streaming into the sky. At first, he thought the sweat in his eyes had obscured his view. As it turned out, the base’s mortar system had activated, and its Gatling cannons were shooting upwards to destroy the enemy shells before they fell. Hasard quickly engaged his F-16’s maximum afterburner to increase thrust and soar above the fray. He and his wingman were safe, but the maneuver used up almost all their remaining fuel. After some quick, in-the-moment calculations and analyses about whether he could reach the nearest airfield, he realized that the best solution was a high-risk mid-air refuel.

At its core the job of an Air Force pilot is to make decisions (about 50 in 15 minutes in this incident). And while the vast majority of us will never sit in the cockpit of an F-16, the methods pilots use to make quick decisions in extreme, high-stress environments can benefit us all. In his new book, The Art of Clear Thinking, Hasard lays out the various procedures that allow pilots to, among other things, keep themselves calm, correctly assess situations, and make quick choices without falling prey to psychological traps. He broke down some key decision-making tactics as well as some mental toughness techniques. It’s worth remembering.