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Decisive: How to Make Better Choices in Life and Work

Chip & Dan Heath

Decisive: How to Make Better Choices in Life and Work Cover
Rating
7.5/10
Difficulty
Moderate
Read time
9 hours
Best in
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336 pagesRead Jul 11, 2015

Before readingWhy I picked it up

Continuing to improve my decision-making abilities is a life-long process, but I hope to get the foundation in as early as I can, that's why a number of books I've prioritized in my early years have been cognitive psychology related. I read and enjoyed Made to Stick by the Heath brothers and loved their ability to simplify complex times and formulate principles and action steps.

After readingPosted

We can fall into natural biases that result in bad decisions. The Heath brothers refer to these biases as the “Four villains of Decision Making”, they are: Framing your choice in too narrow terms, Seeking out information that supports your biases, Being influenced by short-term emotions, and Being overconfident about the future.

Decisive can help you improve your rational thinking and decision making by using four principles that can help you overcome the brains' natural biases to make better, more informed decisions. These four principles are: Widen your options, Reality-Test your assumptions, Attain Distance before deciding, and Prepare to be wrong. If you've read the Heath brother's Made to stick, which focused on ideas, Decisive's focus is to help you make better decisions.

Three reasons to read it

  1. Improve your rational thinking and decision-making skills
  2. Learn about the "Four Villains of Decision Making"
  3. Become more confident in your decisions

Notes for this book are still being transcribed.