Our co-founder and executive director, Bill Kieffer recently read “The Hidden Traps in Decision Making”. This article, first published in 1998 by John Hammond, Ralph Keeney, and Howard Raiffa, examines eight psychological traps that can affect the way we make business decisions.
This insightful article points out that sometimes bad decisions are not the fault of the decision-making process but rather the mind of the decisionmaker. The way the human brain works can sabotage the choices we make.
Researchers have long been studying how our brains work to make decisions. This research has revealed that we use unconscious routines called ‘heuristics’ for most decisions. These serve us well in most situations; but sometimes they can reduce our decision-making success.
I’ve long held that military career transition is at its core, a decision-making exercise; one that exists in the context of great change. Nothing is status quo. We have to define our future and decide how to leverage our past. We must balance confidence and caution, and learn how to best react to recent, unfamiliar events.
With some thoughtful attention, each of the eight traps can be overcome.
– Realize these traps exist and we are vulnerable to them.
– Consider broad perspectives.
– Don’t get tied to any one perspective, definition, or option too soon.
– Remember that your ‘status quo’ is changing. Very little will be the same in the future. Prepare to leverage your past in a very new world.
– View your experiences as ‘investments in your future’ rather than ‘sunk-costs of the past’.
– Figure out your “why” before you dive into your “what”, “how”, “when” and “where”.
– Frame your situation well. Are you ‘leaving the military’? Or are you ‘starting a fresh leg of your journey’? The difference in framing can shift your entire approach.
– Be confident but not cocky.
– Be cautious, but not overly. Jumping out if a perfectly good aircraft after proper training and with good equipment is dangerous. Doing so with out such preparation is just plain stupid.
If you’d like to learn more, register for upcoming free, online training sessions at vetercareerjourney.org!
