403: How To Escape The Either/Or Trap And Make Better Decisions
The Modern Manager
Sequence decisions and run experiments
Mamie recommends sequencing choices over time and using experiments to inform permanent moves.
You’re stuck between two options, going back and forth, trying to figure out the “right” choice. Should you hire or not? Change systems or stay the same? Restructure or keep things as they are? The more you think about it, the more stuck you feel.
It’s easy to assume the answer is hidden somewhere between those two choices, but often, that’s the real problem. You’re treating a complex decision as if it only has two possible paths.
In this quick lesson, I share five practical strategies to help you break out of binary thinking and expand your options.
By the end of this lesson, you’ll know how to approach decisions more creatively, uncover better solutions, and move forward with greater confidence, without feeling stuck between “either” and “or.”
Conversation Topics
- (00:00) Why either-or thinking keeps you stuck in tough decisions
- (00:59) How binary thinking limits better, more creative solutions
- (01:30) Strategy 1: Generate “options within options” to expand your choices
- (03:03) Strategy 2: Challenge the assumptions behind your choices
- (03:58) Strategy 3: Sequence decisions instead of treating them as permanent
- (04:20) [Extended Episode] Strategy 4: Create hybrid solutions that combine the best of both options
- (04:44) [Extended Episode] Strategy 5: Reframe decisions from different stakeholder perspectives
- (05:20) How to recognize when you’re stuck in either-or thinking
- (05:40) Your challenge: Apply one strategy to a current decision
- (06:00) Why better decisions come from expanding, not narrowing, your options
📚 Additional Resources
✨ Read the transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1CqY5XO5bUVxKGO8gxqEneN4DtYWGOoVykBuwYM6C1K4/edit?usp=sharing
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