I love Kindle. No, I mean I really love Kindle. Because if I see a book I really want, I can choose to download it instantly, and in a matter of seconds I am diving into the author’s work. I’ve started reading Workarounds That Work: How to Conquer Anything That Stands in Your Way at Work by Russell Bishop and I was instantly intrigued by the title of chapter 9: Death by Decision---Stop Deciding and Start Choosing.
Russell talks about the difference between deciding and choosing. He says “many people have a difficult time with decisions and that’s because decisions can be associated with some kind of negative consequence if they turn out wrong in some way. Deciding something can also carry with it a sense of finality...”
To decide (from Latin, to cut off) is a process of limitation, and that’s typically how we approach our design phase of projects---we describe and document what functionality and features will be configured; versus what is not included, which gets cut out of the project.
Russell continues by saying that “choosing is more about gaining clarity about where you are heading – what is your purpose, goal or desired outcome? By keeping the outcome in mind, you can then brainstorm options, or choices, about how to get there.” Choosing may also make it easier for the team to “backtrack a bit, and select a different option or choice” should the first choice not work as well as had been planned.
Instead of opening our design phase with “Now we have to decide what will part of our Kronos implementation”, what if we led with “Now we get to choose what we’ll implement.” Could this shift help the developers and project team better weigh the options and move more thoughtfully toward the desired outcome, to deliver a quality project? Letting a project team choose, rather than decide their design elements sounds like a more positive, creative and proactive process to me.
I’m going to monitor myself during June for how often I encourage others (and myself) to choose, rather than decide. I’d like to know your thoughts. How could this change in approach—where you start choosing, rather than deciding---work with your teams?
Thanks for taking the time to stop by The "Kronos Guy" Blog today. Wishing you the best on your Kronos project.
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