Truth About Making Smart Decisions, The

Table of Contents

Preface  ix

Introduction  x

Part I         The Truth About Preparing for Decisions

Truth 1       Before a major decision, get some Z’s  1

Truth 2       Act from a state of clarity  3

Truth 3       If you can’t get distance, get perspective  7

Truth 4       Keep it real  11

Truth5        Use a systematic process  15

Truth 6       Know your decision-making style  19

Part II        The Truth About Why Bad Decisions Are Good

Truth 7       To make better decisions, make more mistakes  23

Truth 8       Be prepared to profit from your mistakes  27

Truth 9       Learn from your close calls  29

Truth 10     Learn from the decisions of others  33

Truth 11     Don’t judge your decisions based on their outcome  35

Truth 12     Leave yourself room to get back from the pole  39

Part III       The Truth About the Limits of Your Mind

Truth 13     Understand common “decision traps”  43

Truth 14     Giving up something? Get over it!  47

Truth 15     It’s possible to miss an entire gorilla  51

Truth 16     You may see only what you’re looking for  53

Truth 17     You’re not as clever as you think you are  57

Truth 18     Your view of the world depends on what planet you’re from  61

Truth 19     Beware of seeing patterns that aren’t there  65

Truth 20     Different is not always better  69

Part IV       The Truth About Complex Decisions

Truth 21     Boil knowledge down to its essence–and then act on it  71

Truth 22     Decisions are not snapshots but movies  75

Truth 23     No decision is an island  79

Truth 24     Build the city around your decision  83

Part V        The Truth About Data

Truth 25     Listen for the dog that doesn’t bark  85

Truth 26     Sorry, Joe Friday. The facts are never “just the facts.”  89

Truth 27     Recognize the power of intuition  91

Part VI       The Truth About Acting Decisively

Truth 28     The wrong decision is better than none at all  95

Truth 29     Get 80 percent (or less) of what you need, and then act on it  99

Truth 30     Every decision carries risk. Get used to it.  103

Truth 31     Not making a decision is a decision  107

Part VII      The Truth About Decisions in Groups

Truth 32     Two heads can be worse than one  111

Truth 33     Use constructive conflict  115

Truth 34     Surround yourself with people smarter than yourself  119

Truth 35     Make decision roles clear  123

Truth 36     Break free from the prisoner’s dilemma  127

Part VIII     The Truth About Emotions

Truth 37     A little adrenaline can be a good thing  131

Truth 38     Understand the impact of emotions  135

Truth 39     Beware of the attractive new shortcut  139

Part IX      The Truth About Ethical Decision Making

Truth 40     Don’t do anything you wouldn’t want seen on YouTube  143

Truth 41     There are no quiet corners safe from scrutiny  145

Truth 42     To know where you’re going, know where you stand  149

Truth 43     Don’t let power or ego sway you from your course  153

Part X       The Truth About Big Decisions

Truth 44     Lower the costs of failure  157

Truth 45     Break down big decisions into smaller ones  161

Truth 46     Don’t forget the screwdrivers  165

Part XI      The Truth About Moving On

Truth 47     Keep your eye on the long term  169

Truth 48     Belief in your decision can make it come true  173

Truth 49     Keep a sense of humor  177

Truth 50     Don’t look back  181

Additional Resources  183

References  184

About the Author  188