Here - Don Wyld

Page 14 Your Newspaper April 2009Thoughts to PonderBe kinder than necessary because everyone you meetis fighting some kind of battle.A sharp tongue can cut your own throat.Weighing up pros and consBy Dr. Peter HoneyLesser Known LawsThe 50-50-90 rule: Anytime you have a 50-50 chanceof getting something right, there’s a 90% probabilityyou’ll get it wrong.Change is inevitable, except from a vendingmachine.People who identify options and weigh up the pros andcons of each are far more likely to make sound decisionsthan people who seize on the first expedient course of action.Unfortunately many people, when faced with a problem,have a compulsion to find a quick solution either becausethey have a low tolerance for unresolved problemsor for ambiguity or both.You can help people to become better problem solversand acquire an essential learning skill by insisting on theidentification and analysis of at least three options beforea decision is taken. This discipline forces people to do anumber of worthwhile things such as:Search for at least three possible courses of action• Draw up a list of advantages for each course of actionIn addition, the existence of explicit criteria upon whichthe decision is based makes it easier to monitor and evaluatethe effectiveness of the chosen course of action once ithas been implemented.If you insist on the three options discipline, you will helpyour colleagues learn some important lessons, amongstthem beingIt is never true to say ‘there is no alternative’: there isalways a choice.Even intuitive ‘gut feel’ decisions should be checked outto see how they compare with other options (sometimesthe intuitive decision will be confirmed as the best, sometimesit won’t).Some random thoughts:The nicest thing about the future is that it alwaysstarts tomorrow.Money will buy a fine dog, but only kindness willmake him wag his tail.If you don’t have a sense of humor, you probablydon’t have any sense at all.How come it takes so little time for a child who isafraid of the dark to become a teenager who wants tostay out all night?Business conventions are important because theydemonstrate how many people a company can operatewithout.Why is it that at class reunions you feel younger thaneveryone else looks?Scratch a dog and you’ll find a permanent job.No one has more driving ambition than the boy whowants to buy a car.There are no new sins; the old ones just get morepublicity.There are worse things than getting a call for a wrongnumber at 4 AM. It could be a right number.Think about this ... No one ever says ‘It’s only agame’ when his team is winning!I’ve reached the age where the happy hour is a nap.Be careful reading the fine print. There’s no wayyou’re going to like it.The trouble with bucket seats is that not everybodyhas the same size bucket.• Draw up a list of disadvantages for each course of action• Decide what criteria to use to weigh up the advantagesand disadvantages (ie practicality, feasibility, acceptability,cost effectiveness)• Apply the criteria and make a decision on the best courseof action• Convince others that the chosen course of action is, allthings considered, the best.CROSSWORD ANSWERDOWNSIDE OF SPORTSPUZZLE SOLUTIONSIt isn’t only the sheer number of advantages/disadvantagesthat win the day, more important is the weight eachcarries against the criteria.It is easier to make a convincing case for a course of actionif alternatives can be cited and shown to be wanting.Your insistence on three options will force your colleaguesto become better problem-solvers and decisionmakersand, at the same time, increase their learning anddevelopment.SUDOKU ANSWERHorror Movie