Whether in our personal lives or while at work,
there are times when we must chose whether to follow through with
something we fear will fail, explode or otherwise turn out badly.
This choice is challenging when we are put against a group or a company. Our
basic tendency is to follow the group and fit-in. We are social
animals and there is a lot to be said about the benefits of working
together for a common good, suppressing fears, and fighting on.
Stay-the-Course is so Old-School: Except
that "stay-the-course" only works when we are dealing with cause-and-effect relationships with definable consequences. These situations are less common in our ever-wired,
ever-on world. Worst of all our tendency to "go with the majority" doesn't help us when the question is broad and has consequences we cannot predict.
We Don't Seem to Have Much Choice in our Choices: Worst of all recent research seems to show that we don't have much conscious control of our decisions. Neurological Research has
shown that you either support or are against an idea even before consciously thinking it over. You decision is subconsciously developed based on your respect for the people involved, basic
values, and thousands of other connections your
mind. I can't help you with that, but I can help you make a reasonable argument. To do that you will need to logically
run though this check-list to justify your feelings. Who knows? You might just decide to give it up as well.
My "Take-a-Breath" Tool for Logical Decisions: I like to call it "Take a Breath". There are four steps and each one involves stopping, taking a breath and then making a simple choice; stop or go.
Step 1: Responsibility? - Who
is responsible for this decision if it does go south? If it doesn't
really involve you, there may be some logic in closing one eye and
focusing on your work. If you are even partially responsible, continue
-
Step 2: Three Consequences? - What are the three most hazardous
consequences of this going wrong? - Just find three that are direct,
indirect consequences are hard to predict and manage - direct ones like
"not being able to produce information that supports Our claims" are
more real. After you know what can happen it is time to -
Step 3: Opinion?
- What is your opinion on what should be done to prevent this from
happening? You need to give some solid opinion instead of just "it
doesn't feel right". The three consequences show you what can go wrong,
now it is time to explain why this is big enough to prompt a change.
Once you have your opinion it is time to -
Step 4: Documentation -
How are you going to document your opinion? The best way is to discuss
this with the team leader and then send an email cced to a few other
people in your team (with their concent). If it is serious enough and
the team leader won't listen, take it higher. But every step of the way
must be documented.
Step 5: Options - Based on the last step, you
likely have a few options - continue to fight, accept whatever changes
were or weren't made, walk-away.
Walking Away: This method won't ensure you make the right choice. You will still make mistakes; we all do. But this method does help make your decisions seem a little more logical. If anything, I hope this method can help you let-go of things you really shouldn't be wasting your time worrying about.
What are your thoughts on this? How do you deal with those impending doom decisions?
