Updated: Resist the urge to un-decide — Kelford Labs Daily

Today’s newsletter is updated from May 2023. It’s easy to mistake making lots of decisions—and changing our minds—with decisiveness and action. But it usually creates chaos, not effectiveness.

Making a lot of decisions—or making them quickly—doesn’t make someone “decisive.”

Because, if they have to make that many decisions, or make them that fast, it’s likely that they’re not actually making them at all.

Being “decisive” is, in my experience, a euphemism for being incredibly indecisive.

You can tell by asking this: Would other people, like my coworkers, partners, or employees say I’m decisive, or would they say I change my mind a lot?

Because decisions require tradeoffs, and commitment.

If we find ourselves “pivoting” frequently, it’s not because we keep making decisions, it’s because we haven’t made one yet.

Moving bodies—like boats, bicycles, and people—change direction easiest when they’re already in motion. When they’re already heading somewhere.

But it’s almost impossible to redirect something that isn’t moving anywhere at all.

So don’t be “decisive.” Make decisions, and stick with them long enough to see where they can take you.

We must be willing and eager to change our minds when the facts change, but we won’t change the facts by constantly changing our minds.

It helps to remember that changing direction quickly is called spinning, not choosing.

And making fast, frequent decisions is called un-deciding, not being decisive.

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