| A space shuttle launch fails killing the astronauts on | | | | As you look at the components of a decision the |
| board, an exploratory drilling well leaks catastrophically | | | | traps become clear. After the event the worldview |
| and causes an environmental disaster and bankers | | | | of the spacemen, oilmen and bankers are shown to |
| take decisions that put the whole world economy at | | | | be wrong. The memories they used did not help |
| risk of meltdown. By any measure the people taking | | | | them and they ignored the important information that |
| these decisions are very bright and did not want the | | | | was available to them. It can be understood how |
| outcomes that occurred. Decision traps were waiting | | | | they fell for these traps. Decisions they had taken to |
| for them and will have wrecked many of the careers | | | | date had been successful. All the people involved had |
| of those falling in to these traps. What happened? | | | | been promoted over many years taking bigger and |
| At the heart of any decision is the integration of a | | | | bigger decisions and getting them right. At the |
| worldview, memories of what has gone before and | | | | moment they fell in to the decision trap their |
| information available in the present. A worldview is a | | | | worldview was as solid as rock, there memory full of |
| set of theories you hold about the world and is | | | | successful events and they were confident they |
| updated as you gain new experience in life. It is a | | | | were choosing the right information for the decisions |
| pretty solid structure and becomes increasingly | | | | they took. |
| difficult to change as you age. In fact if new | | | | Decision traps are everywhere and they hit at the |
| information comes along to discredit a worldview you | | | | most vulnerable moments. It is possible they will |
| have the first thing your mind will do is look for more | | | | destroy this planet we live on. The key to avoiding |
| information to confirm your current view. Memories | | | | them is to ensure that you test each of your |
| are also unreliable data. A memory is only ever a | | | | decisions against an alternative, and possibly opposing, |
| partial representation of what occurred in the past. | | | | worldview. Test your memory against those holding |
| Like trying to describe something with words there is | | | | different memories and understand what would |
| much missed out. Finally there is always too much | | | | happen if your memory is incomplete (which by its |
| information for any one individual or group of people | | | | design it always is). Also test your decision against |
| to take in to account. You always need to eliminate | | | | the information some of your best critics want you |
| information you do not think important or reach a | | | | to use. Realise that at your moment of greatest |
| point in time when you say that is all you can take in | | | | confidence in the decision you are about to take you |
| to account and now you must decide. | | | | may be about to fall in to a decision trap. |