Big business definition pros and cons11/16/2023 Analyze and decide!Īfter you have removed the balancing arguments, it’s time for a final analysis: This way, you can reliably delete the arguments to arrive at the most compelling ones, for or against a specific course of action. If the list is still too long and confusing, eliminate the pairs that only match in the overall weighting. Next, delete the pairs that match in importance and probability in both individual values. Nevertheless, you should be extremely careful here not to have attributes a wrong importance or probability. These low-ranking items may be important in themselves, but do not play a critical role in the decision-making process. For example, you may want to kick out half the low-ranking scores to arrive at the selection set. Now it’s time to simplify! Delete the arguments with the same low score. Subsequently, you will arrive at the overall weights of the arguments, both pro & con. So, take your calculator or create an Excel spreadsheet to calculate the products of these numerical values. However, assessing the importance & probability are sensible & important steps. Determine the weighsĪdmittedly, Benjamin Franklin did not mention exactly how you should weigh the individual arguments. Again, you can assign points from 1-10, where 1 is extremely unlikely and 10 is extremely certain. Next, try to predict the possibility of the individual items (pros & cons) materializing. Evaluate the probability of the pros and cons items If possible, use a numeric scale to place relative weights, say from 1-10, with 10 an extremely important point. You will finally have something tangible & worth scrutiny! However, ask yourself how important the individual points are. The brain will rattle even more! The numbers game will cause you to sweat. Instead, tighten your thought process & sharpen your focus. Assess the importance of the individual points!įrom now on try to quantify the impact using concrete numbers. If so, spread the process over the next few days. Perhaps, you don’t have to make the final decision until the end of the week instead of today. Not all our thoughts are present at some point. According to the Benjamin Franklin method, take your time, especially when it comes to making an important decision. Find pros and cons!Ī logical step that you already know from the standard pros-and-cons list: on the left you list the advantages, on the right, the arguments that speak against it. Good example: Should I accept the new job offer?īad example: Should I go to Italy, the US or Spain during the summer vacation? 2. These are questions to which you can answer with Yes or No. However, the Benjamin-Franklin method is most suitable for close-ended questions. There are a variety of decision-making techniques. Sounds like a pros-and-cons list, doesn’t it? But because the process is a little more complicated. To get over this, my way is, to divide half a sheet of paper by a line into two columns, writing over the one pro, and over the other con. In 1772, the theologian Joseph Priestley, having heard of his successful method for complex decisions, asked Benjamin Franklin for advice. What good is it if you have 10 pros, but that one con gives you a ton of headache? This is where Benjamin Franklin’s method may help you! History of this method Yet, the whole thing doesn’t feel helpful than before. However, one column is significantly longer than the other. Furthermore, this approach also adds a visual dimension to help facilitate the decision-making process. Writing things down frees up your mental capacity for thinking and decision-making. The faintest ink is more powerful than the strongest memory Even the process of putting it on paper can be enormously illuminating. When countless arguments are in your head, it is difficult to keep an overview. Can you manage to have all the arguments in your head at the same time? If so, congratulations! However, many of us find it difficult to do so. Our brain loves to get lost in a tangle of diffuse thoughts. Similarly, list the arguments against it (Cons) on the right. On the left, list the arguments in favor of the decision (Pros). All you need is a sheet of paper with two columns for pros-and-cons. There is hardly an easier method than the good old pros-and-cons list to make decisions. This is based on the experience of, none other than, Benjamin Franklin! This article describes the limits of this list and shows a possible way out. Make informed decisions according to Benjamin Franklin. Hardly any other method is so popular for making decisions.
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