The Decision-Maker

Sharpen your judgment so you can make wise choices that are aligned with your values  

Why this matters: AI provides options and drafts. Humans choose, and answer for outcomes. We turn ideas into actions while incorporating our core knowledge in order to make decisions – even when the data is incomplete, the stakes are high and values are in conflict. AI has no responsibility for the outcomes. In making choices, humans define who they are and what they value. 

Mini-tool: Panning for Gold

AI fills your pan with river mud – endless options, some of it valuable and some useless. Wisdom is the act of washing away the bulk to find the heavy nuggets of value. Use these four filters to sort through the machine’s output and find the gold – the wisest choice.

Filter 1: The Reality Filter (facts)

Mud to wash away: False or misleading information
Test:  Are these “facts” verified realities, or just plausible-sounding text?

Filter 2: The Identity Filter (values)

Mud to wash away: Decisions that are efficient but don’t fit with who you are.
Test: Would I respect myself for making this choice?

Filter 3: The Empathy Filter (others)

Mud to wash away: Decisions that are selfish or ignore human dignity.
Test: How does this affect others? 

Filter 4: The Durability Filter (time)

Mud to wash away: Short-term relief that creates long-term debt.
Test: How will this play out in a month? A year?AI can help summarize facts and provide a logical argument but only you can decide if those facts and arguments are appropriate for the situation and if the audience will likely find them persuasive. peed, volume, agreement

Try it

Next time you face a complicated choice, try to pan for gold to find the best option:

Fill the pan: 
Combine your thinking with AI output to generate many ways to handle a difficult situation.

Wash it:

Reality: What are the real facts of the issue you are facing? Which options are just excuses and shortcuts? (discard)
Identity: Which options feel cowardly, manipulative or wrong? (discard)
Empathy: Which options would have a negative impact on other people? (discard)
Durability: Which options solve the problem now but are likely to cause problems in the future? (discard).

The Gold:
The option that remains – honest, brave and farsighted – is the wise choice.