Ten Ways …


to make better decisions By Robert Ashton


How did you vote in the 2016 referendum? Actually, don’t tell me because I don’t want to know. What I am really interested in is how, three years later, the negotiations between our Government and the EU have failed to deliver agreement. Our politicians have, it seems, rejected all the options, leaving a stalemate that at the time of writing, has proved impossible to break. I think the problem was that we were all asked to vote on a


complex issue, without being given enough information to make a rational decision. To compound this, our Prime Minister triggered the two year countdown without having even started negotiating. It’s perhaps like ordering a new £100m feed mill without forecasting future market trends. But that’s enough about Brexit. We all have to make decisions


every day. Some are simply: for example, what colour socks to wear. Others need a lot more thought. What direction is our career going to take? Am I going to marry this person and commit to spending the next fifty years with them? What investment do we need to make now, to be equipped to meet regulatory requirements and market demand in 2025? So prompted by Brexit, I’ve been thinking about decision making. Here are 10 ways I think we can all make better decisions: 1. Identify the real question – Is what you are making a decision about at the root of the issue, or will the problem remain whichever decision you take? Turning left or right at a junction only helps if one of the two roads leads you closer to your destination! 2. Do your research – Most of the decisions we have to make have already been made by others in other, similar situations. We can learn from the experience of others, although of course we have to allow for the different context. Both statistical and anecdotal research can help you make more informed decisions. 3. Brainstorm your options – Rarely is a decision binary; there are often a number of options, including of course doing nothing. Take time to explore all the options, rather than just choosing between the most obvious. Remember that doing nothing can be the best answer. 4. Dig deep to understand what might also happen – So often when we make decisions, we forget to consider what might happen as a result of our decision. Fishing quotas intended to protect fish stocks have, for example, led to perfectly good fish being thrown overboard. You cannot easily control what swims into your trawler nets. 5. Don’t ignore your instinct – I’m a firm believer that our subconscious can process far more data than our conscious mind.


If what looks to be the right decision somehow doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t. More delving into the issue may well reveal that what at first seemed an obvious choice, is in fact far from it. 6. Extrapolate - My wife is always accusing me of looking way into the future to worry about the worst possible outcome. Yes, a big decision taken today can have far reaching consequences, but life tends to provide you with opportunities to adjust your direction of travel along the way. Nevertheless, I do prefer to explore the very best, and very worst possible outcomes as part of my decision making process. 7. Don’t overthink – Another of my traits is to overthink even the simplest of decisions. I may agonise over my choice of breakfast, but by lunchtime it has been forgotten. Those of who overthink can also dwell endlessly on what turned out to be wrong decisions. But no amount of regret or remorse can unpick the consequences of a bad decision. We have to dust ourselves down and move on, rather than waste time and effort wallowing in our mistakes. 8. Don’t be influenced by social pressure – More than six million people signed a petition calling for the Government to cancel Brexit. But would adding your name to that list make a difference? It can be very comfortable to follow the herd. Those who make the greatest difference in the world are usually those who stand out from the crowd and get noticed. 9. Limit your options – There’s a brilliant book titled ‘The Paradox of Choice,’ written by Barry Schwartz, an American psychologist. He writes about how supermarkets that offer too many different types of, say, breakfast cereal, sell less than those that offer just a few best-selling lines. When confronted with a bewildering range of choices, we simply defer making a decision at all. Before making a big decision, make sure you’ve shortlisted the best options first. 10. Consult with an expert – This sounds like a sales pitch for consultants. It’s not meant to be. You will often take a test drive and read reviews before choosing to buy a new car. So take the trouble to ask people with relevant experience to tell you how it was for them. For really big investment decisions, it can be worth travelling to another country to see what you are planning to buy in action. Seeing really can be believing. Many of the decisions taken at work are made by a committee,


often by the Board of an organisation. Collective decision-making is a science in itself with, all too often, those who shout most loudly, or push the hardest, swaying the outcome. I’m a Quaker, and there are aspects of what’s called the ‘Quaker


business method,’ that can be really useful in any meeting where important decisions are being made. For example speaking in turn, rather than all at once, and allowing time for reflection between each contribution. But perhaps the biggest, and most useful difference, is the way


that minutes of a meeting are recorded. Whoever is writing down the decisions made, does so in real time, with each key point read back to the meeting, to make sure that everyone really does agree. It might sound laborious, but I can tell you it really works!


FEED COMPOUNDER MAY/JUNE 2019 PAGE 9


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