At the National Association of Landscape Professionals’ Leaders Forum, attendees had the opportunity to sharpen your own critical-thinking skills by attending the presentation on Friday, February 26 by Risa Mish, Leaders Forum keynote speaker and senior lecturer of management at Cornell University’s Samuel Johnson Graduate School of Management. Here is a simple three-question process that she recommends to help sharpen your decision-making.
Before you make an important decision, ask:
1. What do I know? (and how do I know it?)
2. What information am I missing?
3. What am I assuming, and are those assumptions valid?
“This process leads to better decision-making because it forces us to press the ‘pause’ button and truly think about what we do and do not know, rather than simply relying on our immediate gut reaction, which is often influenced by factors that should have no bearing on the outcome of that particular decision,” Mish says.
Critical thinking is an essential component of good business decision-making. It affects not just purchasing decisions but every aspect of your business.
If two lawn mowers are the same price, some things you should also consider are:
- Reliability
- Fuel efficiency
- Ergonomic features
- Warranty coverage
- Peer reviews or recommendations
Original content from the NALP Leader’s Forum 2016 Guide.
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