Many of the decisions we face are presented as either / or.
This or that.
Right or left.
Please choose between the two evils and find the lesser.
A quick assessment of the pros and cons should do the trick.
This is what we are paid to do; we make decisions.
Pressed for time and distracted, we process the transaction.
Push it down the management assembly line.
Gotta keep things moving.
Speed is of the essence.
No time for dilly-dallying.
But it’s a trap.
We confuse action with understanding.
We’re tricked into believing we can see the whole picture.
Sometime later.
When we’re cleaning up the mess.
Once we’ve missed the exit.
And traveled far from our intended destination.
We recall the decision.
How can we be blamed?
Too many choices. Too much to do.
Finding a third alternative is hard work.
It takes courage.
It takes awareness.
It takes curiosity.
It takes persistence.
It takes dialogue.
Moving beyond this or that to the other thing,
Requires a willingness to pause the assembly line.
To recognize there could be more at stake.
To look beyond the transaction to the possibilities.
To be conscious of our limitations.
To consider what else might be true.
To evaluate the long-term effect.
We have to be willing to turn off the autopilot.
Even ignore the GPS.
And use our imagination.
