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This post reminds me of the story I read of a Canadian billionaire who overcame this issue. Before he made big decisions, he wrote out on the notepad pros/cons
by ttol 16y ago
This post reminds me of the story I read of a Canadian billionaire who overcame this issue. Before he made big decisions, he wrote out on the notepad pros/cons and weighted each point with a number from 1-5, depending on how important each was to him. Then he would total it, and the side with the highest number wins. He did this from broke to billionaire and the story says he uses it to this day.
What are some HN'ers methods for keeping time & money?
- nostrademons 16y agoI often write out the pros and cons, weight them, do out the calculations, and then ignore them and go with my gut instinct. There's some evidence that this is more effective than going strictly with the numbers. Our unconscious minds are often able to process more information than our conscious minds are: there're details that we're aware of, but don't know that we're aware of. They get missed in the calculation, but get included by a gut check. The reason for writing out all the pros and cons, even if you throw them away later, is to force yourself to think about all the relevant facts that you can. There's a difference between issues you've never thought about and issues that you've thought about but can't hold in your head all at once. Plans are useless, but planning is essential.
- njl 16y agoFrequently, when I'm uncertain or ambivalent about a binary decision, I'll flip a coin. When the coin lands, I feel that moment of happiness or annoyance at the result. I then use that feeling to make my decision. If I realize that I really don't care, I just go with the result of the coin flip.
- prawn 16y agoI've been known to quote for clients by rolling dice.