Dilemma's - what do I do to solve this?

A dilemma (Greek: δί-λημμα "double proposition") is a problem offering at least two possibilities, neither of which is practically acceptable. (Source: Wikipedia)

How often do you have dilemmas at work?  You are working towards creating a solution or are trying to work out a problem but no matter what you do there are going to be ill consequences.  Those consequences can either directly or more often indirectly affect you.

Dilemmas are often things we try very hard to steer away from and to avoid.  But when we are faced with a dilemma I recommend you consider these things before you go forward -

1. Who will this decision effect.  Map out the parties and persons that will ultimately be affected by your decision.  Think how about who will be directly/indirectly affected and what will happen with those people?
2. How will this decision affect people.  Some decisions will have limited impact while others will have wide riplle effects. 
3. When will this decision take affect.  You may not be able to avoid making a decisions but it is better to let key affectted people know well before the fact when you can.

Here is what I recommend.  Draw a series of circles within circles and map out the two scenarios using those circles.  Start with the directly affected people in the middle of the pond and then work your way outwards.

Consider such things as - financial impacts (them and you), people affected, the timeline, the strength of the affect on people, the amount of work that will be left behind and how many other people may you need to employ to offset the loss?.  For example - the person at the centre of the pond will have the highest % of affectedness.  Then in each ripple ring out from the centre the % of affect will decrease.

Then you can overlay the two and make a decision based on those facts.  A dilemma simply put is making the best choice yu know how using the information that you have available to achieve the best outcomes for all involved.

The worst thing you can do when you face a dilemma is to be an ostrich, put your head in the sand and hope it will go away.  What you really need to do is be clear, make a decision and move on.

Decision Making Strategies

PMI Method for Decision Making

One way to examine choices is the PMI Method, invented by Edward de Bono. PMI is an acronym for Plus, Minus, Interesting. It takes the Scored Pro & Con a step further by forcing us to think about "what is interesting" about the choice.

• Plus are the pros. What's good about the idea.

• Minus are the cons, the bad points of the idea. And finally,

• Interesting. What is interesting? What are the possibilities?

This chart is especially handy when brainstorming and you have ideas that are not really a pro or a con. Rather, ideas interesting to think about. To calculate your PMI score add up your (Plus) + (Minus) + (Interesting) scores. Items in the "interesting" column can score as a plus or a minus depending on the implication of the thought.

In the example above, the plus score added up to +13, the minus -12, and the interesting column was +3. Added together this idea scores a +4.

While it is easy to think-up why we like or don't like something, we don't usually think about it from the perspective of what is interesting about the idea. Using PMI encourages exploration of possibilities that arise from thinking about it from three directions. It enlarges our view of the situation.


(Via: Paul Williams, @Idea Sandbox).

The Ability To Make Great Decisions

Sometimes things happen in business that will come as a surprise.  Some surprises are good and others are not so good.  Being able to see the road ahead and know what action to take is a vital skill for both a leader and a manager.

 

Seeing ahead is made up of a few different components -

1. Access to information.  Who you talk to and what you are listening to makes a big difference.  Listening is also a lesser practised skill that can get you ahead if you are able to listen to what is being said and then figure out a way to use that knowledge for your benefit.
2. Sheer Instinct.  Making a decision based on gut feel isn't always a bad thing.  You won't always get it right but you need to make a hard call sometime.  The way to make better gut calls is to make them more often and then reassess what happened and what the effects were after the fact. 
3. Women's intuition.  Ladies have a third instinct.  There's no two ways about it.  If somethings up - a female will know.  Ask their opinion before you proceed.

 Nothing in life is ever really clear cut but the more decisions you make, and the more you reflect on your past choices will help you define and refine your skills.

(Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sweetteainnyc/3227138108/) 

Making The Right Choice

What is the right choice to make in any given situation?  How do you know if the choice you are making is right or wrong?

I have been working through exactly this kind of situation.  It is a 'what should I do' situation.  So where should we start when it comes to making choices?

I go back to my annual resolutions, goals and objectives that I set for myself in December of last year.  Those goals are - 1.  Compliance, 2. Excellence and 3.  Teamwork.

So the situation arose where I had to pick between a good option that was mainly for my benefit or an option whereby I would forfeit personal gain in order to be involved with and develop my team.

Okay - so it doesn't sound that bad - but - giving up a financial reward for little effort isn't as easy as it may sound.  I was pretty keen on ensuring I got the best personal reward.  Until I started reflecting on where I am at and what is important to me in 2010.

So I chose to go with the team option.  Giving up a bit of money in the short term I decided was a poor way to get ahead when compared to the benefits and rewards of working with the team to grow the financial benefits and rewards for everyone.

Guess what - after I made the decision to stay true to my goals I had a pair of breakthrough moments.  One - the conflicting appointment was shifted so I can still make a personal gain, and two - I may have a chance to do something I have always dreamed of and may now be able to do.

Moral of the story - stay true to yourself, act and think with integrity and the rewards will come your way.

(Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/will-lion/3122985108/)

List - Audits

Creating the list

...is not the same as obeying the list.

Do you make the list you check off, follow and work on every day? When does it get made? Who approves it? Do you identify tasks or perform them?

If you had a better list, would you do better work? If you made the list instead of just obeying it, would you be a more valuable member of the team?

Yes, asking questions is often more valued than answering them. (If they're the right questions.)

(Source: This series of audit questions comes to you from: Seth Godin)

These questions are very similar to the questions I posed yesterday. However Seth's view is more micro where as mine was macro.

It is important to remember to view the world from other's perspectives and not just your own.

"I've got a new invention. It's a revolving bowl for tired Goldfish." Lefty Gomez.

Decision Making

The ability to make a decision is what seperates the leaders from the followers.

• One person may have a full understanding of a situation (analytic view) but don't do anything with what they know.


• Another person sense's the situation (the hunch view) makes a decision and runs with it.

Who was right and who was wrong? Ultimately this will be proven by the end result. However if the person with the hunch was wrong - they still have time and scope to rearrange the outcomes. And the person who acts is seen to be decisive. Therefire people will be more willing to follow.

1. Summarise. Look at the decision that was made, analyse what the decision was and how it will affect the future.why it was taken.


2. Reflect. Ask yourself why did I take that course of action? By knowing your current motivation you can work towards making better decisions in the future.


3. and Act . If the decision you made was right - brilliant! If the decision you made wasn't so great - by acting early you have given yourself time to a) re-direct your energies, and b) create a fix for the current situation.
   

Paul from the Idea Sandbox has a great spreadsheet that provides a great template when facing your next decision. Be aware - don't spend too long thinking about your decison - get the facts, make a choice and move.

Luke 14:28-31 "Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, 'This fellow began to build and was not able to finish."
"Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Will he not first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand?"