Leaders make tough decisions nearly every day. Too often, they feel rushed or pressured into choices they don’t like and later regret. In this episode, we’ll show you the bad thinking that underlies nearly every bad decision.
Archive for how to think
New Coke: Anatomy of a Terrible Decision
5 Lessons from One of the Worst Product Rollouts of All Time
The Coca-Cola Company’s own website admits that it was probably “a day that will live in marketing infamy.” On April 23, 1985, Coke Chairman and CEO Roberto Goizueta announced to 200 reporters that the company would be changing its formula. It would be still be called Coca-Cola, but this “New Coke” would taste better and […]
Leader: Know Thy Biases
3 Ways to Recognize Them and See Around Them
The road sign in my home state of Washington read: “Litter and it will hurt.” I didn’t think twice about it, but our guests from nearby Vancouver, British Columbia, mouthed the slogan out loud and could hardly believe their ears. They were traveling with us to a birthday party of a mutual friend. “Of all […]
Slow That Decision Down
Stop, Take Stock, and Use That Calendar to Your Advantage
“Don’t rush me, sonny! You rush a miracle man, you get rotten miracles,” warned Billy Crystal, costumed up as Miracle Max in the 1987 classic The Princess Bride. In the movie, that was a laugh line, but it’s not a bad way to think about the decisions you make as a leader. For every decision that […]
How to Avoid Our Most Common Thought Traps
A New Guide to Clear Thinking in a Confusing World
During the early days of the Vietnam War, U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara wanted to know if American military efforts in Vietnam were effective. He charted the numbers of weapons lost, enemies killed, and so on. But there was a hole in his thinking. A critical colleague told McNamara he’d failed to count “the […]