A short list of opposites can help us make a major point in decisioning.
These are actually decisions on auto-pilot.
Opposites
War - Peace
Black - White
Start - Stop
Good - Evil
Begin - End
Life - Death
Bondage - Freedom
Hot - Cold
Night - Day
Finite - Infinite
Even though these are polar opposites, they can become choices that, in the extreme, are easy decisions. But, what about the in-betweens?
It’s the gray (B/W), the lukewarm (H/C), the afternoon (AM/PM)…the somewhere in the middle ones that catch us.
Point is, when it’s not as stark in definition (as above), how do you come to a conclusion?
We are, and will remain, consistent about the answer. It is a model, system, formula or track.
The Zillion Dollar Thinking MODEL:
One. Discovery
Two. Commitment
Three. Solution
Four. Action
So, the next time you get into the gray area of decisioning, please consider the ZDT track. If not this one, cyberspace will have plenty of options (there are now 700,000 apps for the iPhone alone). At the minimum, please download the complimentary eBook at our ZDT site.
Point is that a model is the antidote to staying endlessly stuck. As one author framed it…“better to be consistently decisive than to be completely right.”
As always…you decide.
Zillion Dollar Thinking
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Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
The Latest Polls Say...
How many times a day do we see this headline?
How many times is there full disclosure that describes the details of how a poll was structured and framed?
One site that you can use as a benchmark:
And here is a mantra you can repeat to yourself: “Do Not Trust Undocumented Polls”
And, maybe you can say it (and write it on the whiteboard) to this compounded degree:
2 X 2 = 4
4 X 4 = 16
16 X 16 = 256
256 X 256 = 65,536
65,536 X 65,536 = 4,294,967,296
…and so on to the zillioneth power.
Exaggeration…yes…but here’s the point:
Please do not trust any poll without considering at least some of the following criteria (from the article):
1. Who did the poll?
2. Who paid for the poll and why was it done?
3. How many people were interviewed for the survey?
4. How were those people chosen?
5. What area (nation, state, or region) or what group (teachers, lawyers, voters, etc.) were these people chosen from?
6. Are the results based on the answers of all the people interviewed?
7. Who should have been interviewed and was not? Or do response rates matter?
8. When was the poll done?
9. How were the interviews conducted?
10. What about polls on the Internet or World Wide Web?
11. What is the sampling error for the poll results?
12. Who’s on first?
13. What other kinds of factors can skew the poll results?
14. What questions were asked?
15. In what order were the questions asked?
16. What about "push polls"?
17. What other polls have been done on this topic? Do they say the same thing? If they are different, why are they different?
18. What about exit polls?
19. What else needs to be included in the report of the poll?
20. So I've asked all the questions. The answers sound good. Should we report the results?
So, you don’t know the answers to all these questions? That is the point. If you don’t have enough of the answers…don’t trust the poll result…especially one with a +/- 7point differential (as many now hide).
Simple as that.
As always…you decide.
How many times is there full disclosure that describes the details of how a poll was structured and framed?
One site that you can use as a benchmark:
“20 Questions A Journalist Should Ask About Poll Results”
And here is a mantra you can repeat to yourself: “Do Not Trust Undocumented Polls”
And, maybe you can say it (and write it on the whiteboard) to this compounded degree:
2 X 2 = 4
4 X 4 = 16
16 X 16 = 256
256 X 256 = 65,536
65,536 X 65,536 = 4,294,967,296
…and so on to the zillioneth power.
Exaggeration…yes…but here’s the point:
Please do not trust any poll without considering at least some of the following criteria (from the article):
1. Who did the poll?
2. Who paid for the poll and why was it done?
3. How many people were interviewed for the survey?
4. How were those people chosen?
5. What area (nation, state, or region) or what group (teachers, lawyers, voters, etc.) were these people chosen from?
6. Are the results based on the answers of all the people interviewed?
7. Who should have been interviewed and was not? Or do response rates matter?
8. When was the poll done?
9. How were the interviews conducted?
10. What about polls on the Internet or World Wide Web?
11. What is the sampling error for the poll results?
12. Who’s on first?
13. What other kinds of factors can skew the poll results?
14. What questions were asked?
15. In what order were the questions asked?
16. What about "push polls"?
17. What other polls have been done on this topic? Do they say the same thing? If they are different, why are they different?
18. What about exit polls?
19. What else needs to be included in the report of the poll?
20. So I've asked all the questions. The answers sound good. Should we report the results?
So, you don’t know the answers to all these questions? That is the point. If you don’t have enough of the answers…don’t trust the poll result…especially one with a +/- 7point differential (as many now hide).
Simple as that.
As always…you decide.
Thursday, August 30, 2012
in·di·vid·u·al·ism
noun
1. a social theory advocating the liberty, rights, or independent action of the individual
2. the principle or habit of or belief in independent thought or action
3. the pursuit of individual rather than common or collective interests
4. individual character; individuality
5. an individual peculiarity
Right now, as we watch the GOP National Convention unfold, it is becoming increasing clear what is at stake.
For example, the GOP V.P. candidate Paul Ryan painted the memories of his transition from childhood to the present. As a kid he was able to wait tables, throw papers, mow yards, work in car factories, and then study economics, enter politics, and now, run for second highest office in the land.
He further remembered what his father told him at an early age. He told him that in life he would have to make decisions…and that what should guide him is that he could be “part of the problem or part of the solution.”
What is most important in this campaign is what they are promoting. In speech after speech, in one way or another, the underlying message is individual freedom. More specifically, the freedom to make and act on individual decisions.
While we cannot change the platforms these different campaigns will offer, we can only control our individual decision as a result.
For years, we have taken for granted the freedoms that we enjoy in this country. Considering the stakes, our singular goal from these conventions may well be to support and promote the administration that will leave you and me with the greatest amount of individual freedom…individualism.
As always…You decide.
Friday, August 24, 2012
Beyond the Static…Who Gets It?
How committed are you to
seek the truth in decisioning when information interference is
compounding exponentially?
Ten years ago, from a routine search engine, most topics would yield less than one million results. Today…hundreds of millions is common.
Ten years ago, from a routine search engine, most topics would yield less than one million results. Today…hundreds of millions is common.
Then, consider the volume
of social networks, digital editions, e-books, blog sites, and a
zillion others…all forms of static and interference. Then, the
hardware…smarter by the digital minute and growing by the
nano-second.
The application of
filtering becomes vital when the targeted information is conflicting.
As you are seeking the truth, you are being drowned by a volume of
competing noise.
The questions: Will you
filter? How will you filter?
Could you use a MODEL?
What should it include?
At the risk of redundancy,
the Model for Intelligent Decisioning remains our best offer to help
combat this compounding problem (does anyone believe it will get less
conflicting in our future).
Again, the four steps
applied to this dilemma:
Step One: Discovery (your
issue, objective, problem, candidate)
Step Two: Commitment (your
dedication, testimony, involvement)
Step Three: Solution (your
specific answer to your discovery)
Step Four: Action (your
plan of execution)
The beauty of a model is
that it allows you to organize your thinking/decisioning using
successive and interactive steps. On the contrary, if you are not
willing to take the time to methodically organize, then the decision
before you may not be that important.
Boiled down, we often find
deciders in one of two camps.
The Methodicals or The
Herders
The Methodicals will
decide by commitment, resolve and relentless determination. The
Herders will tend to fall (and decide) into a group (herd) with
limited individual research, facts or true information. They will
believe and accept unchallenged polls, data or news and then melt
into their adopted herd.
One camp seems to get
it…the other one does not, and of course there are those others who
are stuck in the middle and stay frozen in place.
As always…you decide.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
USA...USA...USA...
From
an international perspective, we just celebrated the skills and
achievements of our superior athletes in the 2012 Olympics.
Similarly, we are about to witness the Ryder Cup (golf USA/European event). Following that will be several other smaller events that will showcase the spirit and legacy of our unique American culture.
Similarly, we are about to witness the Ryder Cup (golf USA/European event). Following that will be several other smaller events that will showcase the spirit and legacy of our unique American culture.
These events are related because of the unity and competitiveness of our national spirit, pride and the goal of winning excellence.
In November, we will have a national election. A national decision.
Q. How does this election compare to the various sports events and competitions?
It has to do with our heritage. This country was founded on certain fundamentals and laws that are unique and perpetual. To date, they have brought this nation through a myriad of trials, and not just athletics. This election will be another test of our American spirit as “We the People.”
In this election…would it not be the ultimate response if we could drop the partisan positions (herds), and decide on this country’s direction based on the welfare of the USA where we are all stakeholders and beneficiaries.
USA…USA…USA.
As always…you will decide.
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
The Emerging Lynchpin
Herds Happen
Will we emerge as individuals with choices and freedoms or herds without? Herds can be big or small. The individual question may be how you will influence your herd, or how your herd will influence you? That decision could change our world, and it is only a few months away.From the term herd mentality is the word herd, meaning "group of living creatures," and mentality, implying a certain frame of a thinkable mind. The condensed and personalized definition might be: "how large numbers of people are influenced to act in the same way at the same time."
Herd behavior is distinguished from herd mentality because it applies to animals and people, whereas the term mentality implies a uniquely human phenomenon. Herd mentality can also imply a fear-based reaction to peer pressure which makes individuals act in order to avoid feeling "left behind or left out" from the group. Herd mentality is also sometimes known as "mob mentality.”
Today, we are being conditioned by unexplained and unchallenged polls, undocumented news information, articles and posts, corporate edicts, labor groups, political organizations, various religious movements, and a zillion other herding influences.
Considering the stakes, it would be well worth each of us to take a reflective inventory of how we are interconnected to these herds (e.g. all social networks are a form of herding).
The answer to how all of this may turn out could be:
“Who will influence the herds?”
As always…you will decide.
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Zillion Dollar Thinking: Do You Have a Problem or a Decision?
Zillion Dollar Thinking: Do You Have a Problem or a Decision?: On the surface many will call these synonymous, but maybe not so fast. Often, we may gloss over this slight distinction when faced with ...
Monday, July 30, 2012
Do You Have a Problem or a Decision?
On the surface many will call these synonymous, but maybe not so fast.
Often, we may gloss over this slight distinction when faced with a decision disguised as a problem. But, if we apply the Zillion Dollar Thinking MODEL, we may come to a more extensive alternative.
To refresh, the MODEL has four distinct steps.
Discovery (the problem to be solved)
Commitment
(the missing link)
Solution (the marriage of the real problem to the ideal remedy)
Action (the proactive plan of execution)
So using this model, finding and identifying the problem is just the first step of four in the process. Important point: Step Two often becomes the differentiator…the step of commitment.
Commitment comes in several forms: promise, pledge, vow, obligation, assurance, binder, word, guarantee, warrant, etc.
But again, when was the last time you approached problem solving with the cornerstone of commitment in the process? The reason that is vital is that without commitment it is easy to abort the issue, not dig deep enough or not follow through for a zillion other reasons.
Take away…next time you are faced with a decision you instantly brand as a problem in search of a cursory solution, consider a model approach that is sealed by a solemn and carefully crafted commitment.
The higher the stakes, the more you may need to re-consider.
As always…you decide.
Often, we may gloss over this slight distinction when faced with a decision disguised as a problem. But, if we apply the Zillion Dollar Thinking MODEL, we may come to a more extensive alternative.
To refresh, the MODEL has four distinct steps.
Discovery (the problem to be solved)
Commitment
(the missing link)
Solution (the marriage of the real problem to the ideal remedy)
Action (the proactive plan of execution)
So using this model, finding and identifying the problem is just the first step of four in the process. Important point: Step Two often becomes the differentiator…the step of commitment.
Commitment comes in several forms: promise, pledge, vow, obligation, assurance, binder, word, guarantee, warrant, etc.
But again, when was the last time you approached problem solving with the cornerstone of commitment in the process? The reason that is vital is that without commitment it is easy to abort the issue, not dig deep enough or not follow through for a zillion other reasons.
Take away…next time you are faced with a decision you instantly brand as a problem in search of a cursory solution, consider a model approach that is sealed by a solemn and carefully crafted commitment.
The higher the stakes, the more you may need to re-consider.
As always…you decide.
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Best Decisioning POV
“I decided not kill myself. I had been through some hard times emotionally, but I just decided to suck it up, get over it, and get on with life. It was my best decision! The world can be a great place.”
At a Wilmington rally for Democratic Delaware Senate candidate Chris Coons, President Obama laid to rest any remaining speculation that Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden might switch jobs in 2012, telling a packed crowd in Biden's home state that his choice of Biden was “the single best decision I have made.”
“Ordering AWAI's Accelerated Program for Six-Figure Copywriting was one of the best decisions I've ever made.”
“One of the best decisions I ever made was purchasing a recreational vehicle. This decision led my family and I to experience some of the most enjoyable times together that we ever thought were possible. Traveling down the road in the RV allowed us to come together for large amounts of time, but also have enough space to not feel overcrowded and infringed upon. The day I bought our family RV was the day I got my family back.”
John McCain had no regret about the biggest and most controversial decision of his unsuccessful 2008 presidential campaign. Speaking to Sean Hannity on Tuesday evening in New Hampshire, McCain said naming Sarah Palin his running mate was "still the best decision I've ever made."
Alice Cooper changed his first name from the more masculine Vince…insisting it was one of the best decisions he has ever made. The veteran rocker - born Vincent Furnier - legally renamed himself in the late 1960s but admits his mother Ella Mae still can't get used to the idea. At this point, Alice Cooper is woven into Americana. "My mum's the only one to still call me Vince. She says, 'Hey, superstar, take out the trash.'"
Amazing. From a POV (Point of View) perspective, we all have decisions we may consider our best, and then those that we will regret until eternity. With all the gloom and doom news out these days, it just seemed refreshing to share a few notables from those considered their best. Maybe you have one to share?
As always…you decide.
At a Wilmington rally for Democratic Delaware Senate candidate Chris Coons, President Obama laid to rest any remaining speculation that Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden might switch jobs in 2012, telling a packed crowd in Biden's home state that his choice of Biden was “the single best decision I have made.”
“Ordering AWAI's Accelerated Program for Six-Figure Copywriting was one of the best decisions I've ever made.”
“One of the best decisions I ever made was purchasing a recreational vehicle. This decision led my family and I to experience some of the most enjoyable times together that we ever thought were possible. Traveling down the road in the RV allowed us to come together for large amounts of time, but also have enough space to not feel overcrowded and infringed upon. The day I bought our family RV was the day I got my family back.”
John McCain had no regret about the biggest and most controversial decision of his unsuccessful 2008 presidential campaign. Speaking to Sean Hannity on Tuesday evening in New Hampshire, McCain said naming Sarah Palin his running mate was "still the best decision I've ever made."
Alice Cooper changed his first name from the more masculine Vince…insisting it was one of the best decisions he has ever made. The veteran rocker - born Vincent Furnier - legally renamed himself in the late 1960s but admits his mother Ella Mae still can't get used to the idea. At this point, Alice Cooper is woven into Americana. "My mum's the only one to still call me Vince. She says, 'Hey, superstar, take out the trash.'"
Amazing. From a POV (Point of View) perspective, we all have decisions we may consider our best, and then those that we will regret until eternity. With all the gloom and doom news out these days, it just seemed refreshing to share a few notables from those considered their best. Maybe you have one to share?
As always…you decide.
Friday, July 13, 2012
Can the Trend be Your Friend?
Back in the day, as a resident estate planning specialist with a major securities firm, my office was right next to the commodity office and the “squawk box” that routinely issued breaking market alerts and trends. The futures market had a famous and classic mantra that is still a bellwether icon even today.
"The trend is your friend" is the magic slogan that the futures market lives by every minute of every day. The odds do not favor negative market patterns or consistently mistaken decisions made by management, or major red flags from any of a zillion other categories. Betting on the future of a commodity can be a costly and even dangerous game. It’s a world where leverage and timing rule.
During my many years with that organization, I personally witnessed a trend that was consistent on a different level. It was amazing that a particular client would come in and high five about the killing that he was making as if it would never stop. I got to be friends with several of them. And, when I stopped seeing them come around, I would question their broker. The typical response was “he bought the farm…he went belly up…but most often, he ignored the trends.” Many of them lost it all.
The futures market is a good barometer of what is going on right here and now. We are looking at several trends that can only be labeled as alarming. We will all have our own pet topics, but the elephant in the room is also one of leverage and timing (as above). The upcoming election will be upon us very quickly, and much like the futures market, we will be faced with a decision that will have consequences no matter how we respond.
This may be the very time in history to divorce ourselves from party affiliations and pre-set agendas and look independently at the trends. If you see and feel that what is trending is leading to an economic or personal catastrophe…“let the trend be your friend.”
Unlike the commodities market and the requirements to become a player, we will each have an equal stake in this decision that will only require our vote.
The leverage of your vote, and the timing of this election cannot be more important.
As always…you decide.
"The trend is your friend" is the magic slogan that the futures market lives by every minute of every day. The odds do not favor negative market patterns or consistently mistaken decisions made by management, or major red flags from any of a zillion other categories. Betting on the future of a commodity can be a costly and even dangerous game. It’s a world where leverage and timing rule.
During my many years with that organization, I personally witnessed a trend that was consistent on a different level. It was amazing that a particular client would come in and high five about the killing that he was making as if it would never stop. I got to be friends with several of them. And, when I stopped seeing them come around, I would question their broker. The typical response was “he bought the farm…he went belly up…but most often, he ignored the trends.” Many of them lost it all.
The futures market is a good barometer of what is going on right here and now. We are looking at several trends that can only be labeled as alarming. We will all have our own pet topics, but the elephant in the room is also one of leverage and timing (as above). The upcoming election will be upon us very quickly, and much like the futures market, we will be faced with a decision that will have consequences no matter how we respond.
This may be the very time in history to divorce ourselves from party affiliations and pre-set agendas and look independently at the trends. If you see and feel that what is trending is leading to an economic or personal catastrophe…“let the trend be your friend.”
Unlike the commodities market and the requirements to become a player, we will each have an equal stake in this decision that will only require our vote.
The leverage of your vote, and the timing of this election cannot be more important.
As always…you decide.
Thursday, July 5, 2012
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