‘Interpret information’ is nothing less than knowledge management, one of the greatest challenges facing service based organisations across the planet. One’s ability to interpret information determines what value one yield’s from that information. Where decisions involve more than one person, perhaps a corporation, the interpretation challenge grows exponentially.

‘Know your options’ – again a knowledge management issue. Do you have access to the knowledge resident in your colleague’s heads (perhaps globally distributed) to build a complete picture of your options? The same being true for ‘Know your negotiables and non-negotiables’.

I would add a fourth point ‘ Decide whether to decide’. Often the pressures of business and life cause us to treat our responsibilities as a ‘to do’ list to work through. Smart people recognise when focused procrastination is the best course of action. A delayed response often has the benefit of recency value in respect of new information coming to light.

Those that make the best decisions(including the decision not to decide) win in both life and business. As more decisions involve highly intermeshed globally distributed communities decision making becomes a boardroom challenge.

The negotiables and non-negotiables frame every decision I make. Sometimes I bend, and sometimes not. Understanding my values are key to this decision.

Thanks for the reference. I like your idea about negotiables and non-negotiables.

Cheers,
Steve