Is there a path to developing better leaders and better decision-makers? Look for both. What might interfere? Find areas of agreement and controversy.
1. "Leaders make leaders." It's unlikely that we find consensus on leaders, but don't confuse loud voices with leadership. Examining character and how leaders make choices is a start. Doris Kearns Goodwin's Leadership in Turbulent Times shares her study of the Roosevelts, Lincoln, and Lyndon Johnson.
Former Navy Seal Jocko Willink is another important leadership author in his Extreme Ownership. Leaders are accountable to the mission and to their teams.
Leaders also relate to culture. In Legacy, James Kerr shares how the New Zealand All-Blacks rugby squad relate to both team culture and the Maori culture. "Sweep the sheds" has both literal and figurative self-management. Having a 'blue head' means to be cool under pressure. Players are taught to "leave the jersey in a better place." Teammates understand the Greek proverb that "old men plant trees in whose shade they will never sit."
2. Consider the role of probability in decision making. Weather forecasters learned their forecasts improved when they reported them in probabilities. "There's an 80% chance of rain on Thursday" gives us useful and nuanced opinion.
If you want to read further, consider reading Thinking in Bets.
3. When making judgements, apply "mental models" and cognitive biases to think better. Share examples. You see a player have an exceptionally good performance or struggle. Sample size limits our judgment as one day may not represent their 'weighted average'.
Evaluating an issue or problem. Expand our "circle of competence."
4. Leaders model excellence. They prioritize decision-making for the good of their team over what's good for them. They inform the value of truth - living the truth, telling the truth, and taking the truth.
5. Study analogies and variety of disciplines. Consider keeping lists of stories and analogies as references.
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