What do you think?
Rate this book
Think Again: Why Good Leaders Make Bad Decisions and How to Keep It from Happeining to You
Why do smart and experienced leaders make flawed, even catastrophic, decisions? Why do people keep believing they have made the right choice, even with the disastrous result staring them in the face? And how can you be sure you're making the right decision--without the benefit of hindsight?Sydney Finkelstein, Jo Whitehead, and Andrew Campbell show how the usually beneficial processes of the human mind can become traps when we face big decisions. The authors show how the shortcuts our brains have learned to take over millennia of evolution can derail our decision making. Think Again offers a powerful model for making better decisions, describing the key red flags to watch for and detailing the decision-making safeguards we need.Using examples from business, politics, and history, Think Again deconstructs bad decisions, as they unfolded in real time, to show how you can avoid the same fate.
256 pages, ebook
First published January 6, 2009
18 people are currently reading
301 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
October 31, 2018
Lots of good examples and use of hindsight. Very useful.
August 18, 2009
“Most leaders make bad decisions. Even great leaders can make bad decisions.” The introduction to “Think Again” leads with this statement. The authors Fnklestein, Whitehead and Campbell then proceed to show why. Most importantly, they provide a framework for recognising when such bad decisions may occur and how to safeguard against such decisions.
The book is in three parts – How your brain makes decisions; Why decisions go wrong; and Red flags and safeguards (for recognising and preventing bad decisions).
Part 1, reviews much of the research and current thinking on how the brain works. One particular point of interest that the authors note, is our propensity to tag all our major decisions with emotional tags – tags which can and often do, override rational thinking.
Part 2 chronicles many of the wider known decisions that have proven to be wrong, such as Kennedy’s Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba, Wang Computers’ disastrous (the company now no longer exists) decision to opt for their own proprietary operating system rather than adopt the industry IBM PC standard, and Margaret Thatcher’s Poll Tax debacle. But the authors also provide many case studies of practising managers who have made mistakes in areas such as change management, taking on new roles, and new product or production processes etc. These should prove most insightful to managers at all levels.
All of the cases in Part 2 are used to illustrate the four reasons for bad decision making – misleading experiences, misleading pre-judgments, inappropriate self-interest and inappropriate attachments. The authors describe these as potential “red flags”. In addition to cases, the authors describe a number of studies to demonstrate their point. One that stood out was on “inappropriate self-interest” where 139 experienced auditors (not students) were asked to evaluate a case study to ensure the firm met certain standards. Half the group were told they had been hired by the firm to do this analysis and the other half told they had been hired by another firm wishing to trade with this firm. Those who had been told they were hired by the firm were 30% more likely to find the firm met the standards than those hired by the potential customer!
Part 3 then describes the four “safeguard” strategies for preventing bad decisions – experience, data and analysis; group debate and challenge; governance; and monitoring. None of these will be new to the reader. However, it is the practical and structured way the authors show how these safeguards can be used, that make this book really worthwhile.
There’s also a Database of Cases and a Database of Safeguards with examples that summarise how the red flags have been identified and the safeguards can be used in practice. These make an excellent “how to” and easy reference source for practising managers.
This is a good book. It’s a dense book – and it needs to be, for the subject is complex. The authors have done a great job simplifying the subject and at the same time providing us with a practical way of identifying (red flags) when we might be likely to make a bad decision and how to help avoid (safeguards) making one. It would be a very useful text for any serious management student and will also be highly useful to any manager serious about minimising the chance of making poor decisions.
The book is in three parts – How your brain makes decisions; Why decisions go wrong; and Red flags and safeguards (for recognising and preventing bad decisions).
Part 1, reviews much of the research and current thinking on how the brain works. One particular point of interest that the authors note, is our propensity to tag all our major decisions with emotional tags – tags which can and often do, override rational thinking.
Part 2 chronicles many of the wider known decisions that have proven to be wrong, such as Kennedy’s Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba, Wang Computers’ disastrous (the company now no longer exists) decision to opt for their own proprietary operating system rather than adopt the industry IBM PC standard, and Margaret Thatcher’s Poll Tax debacle. But the authors also provide many case studies of practising managers who have made mistakes in areas such as change management, taking on new roles, and new product or production processes etc. These should prove most insightful to managers at all levels.
All of the cases in Part 2 are used to illustrate the four reasons for bad decision making – misleading experiences, misleading pre-judgments, inappropriate self-interest and inappropriate attachments. The authors describe these as potential “red flags”. In addition to cases, the authors describe a number of studies to demonstrate their point. One that stood out was on “inappropriate self-interest” where 139 experienced auditors (not students) were asked to evaluate a case study to ensure the firm met certain standards. Half the group were told they had been hired by the firm to do this analysis and the other half told they had been hired by another firm wishing to trade with this firm. Those who had been told they were hired by the firm were 30% more likely to find the firm met the standards than those hired by the potential customer!
Part 3 then describes the four “safeguard” strategies for preventing bad decisions – experience, data and analysis; group debate and challenge; governance; and monitoring. None of these will be new to the reader. However, it is the practical and structured way the authors show how these safeguards can be used, that make this book really worthwhile.
There’s also a Database of Cases and a Database of Safeguards with examples that summarise how the red flags have been identified and the safeguards can be used in practice. These make an excellent “how to” and easy reference source for practising managers.
This is a good book. It’s a dense book – and it needs to be, for the subject is complex. The authors have done a great job simplifying the subject and at the same time providing us with a practical way of identifying (red flags) when we might be likely to make a bad decision and how to help avoid (safeguards) making one. It would be a very useful text for any serious management student and will also be highly useful to any manager serious about minimising the chance of making poor decisions.
April 5, 2020
By now we know that the human mind is a very complex, imprecise and inconsistent creature. For all its magic and wonder it can be fickle and wrought with flaws when it comes to deciding. In Think Again, the authors give the reader a good refresh on the bias, heuristics and shortcuts the mind takes while trying to come to a decision. It lays out in a clear and concise manner all of the potholes and road bumps that must be avoided to come to your decision making best.
What is interesting about Think Again is the authors’ framework for why bad decisions get made (misleading prejudgments, misleading experiences, inappropriate self-interest, inappropriate attachment) and the 4 Safeguards for preventing the errors from occurring (experience and data, debate and challenge, monitoring and governance) during the decision making process.
Though this is not “new” to those who have taken a dive down the art and science of decision-making rabbit hole, what is refreshing is the authors “play by play” of how decisions are getting made, step by step, and the where, when and how the Safeguards can come into play.
“Debate and openness beat data for challenging opinion in a meaningful way… ensure assumptions are challenged fully and opinions rigorously debated and biases exposed”
This book is best suited to those making decisions in organizations. For those working in such domains, the decision dynamic that is outlined in the book will feel familiar and you will easily see where your organization’s decision-making process may be falling short. That is, however, not to say that for anyone who is trying to improve their personal decision-making ability this book is to be avoided. Quite the contrary in fact.
When we think of complex organizational decisions, individuals not in the corporate world seem to feel as though those methods do not apply to them. They are doing themselves a disservice to think so. Almost all decisions that are not automatic require some internal debate. In Think Again, a reader will be able to see how perhaps the internal debate should and or could be externalized for your decision making advantage. Isn’t that what we, as individuals and organizations are after, a decision making advantage, a more robust and reliable process and thereby hopefully fewer mistakes. If so, a read here can be a good investment.
Overall Score: 3.4 / 5
In a sentence: This is an in-depth look at how and why decisions go bad and is an informative, albeit at times a dry, read.
What is interesting about Think Again is the authors’ framework for why bad decisions get made (misleading prejudgments, misleading experiences, inappropriate self-interest, inappropriate attachment) and the 4 Safeguards for preventing the errors from occurring (experience and data, debate and challenge, monitoring and governance) during the decision making process.
Though this is not “new” to those who have taken a dive down the art and science of decision-making rabbit hole, what is refreshing is the authors “play by play” of how decisions are getting made, step by step, and the where, when and how the Safeguards can come into play.
“Debate and openness beat data for challenging opinion in a meaningful way… ensure assumptions are challenged fully and opinions rigorously debated and biases exposed”
This book is best suited to those making decisions in organizations. For those working in such domains, the decision dynamic that is outlined in the book will feel familiar and you will easily see where your organization’s decision-making process may be falling short. That is, however, not to say that for anyone who is trying to improve their personal decision-making ability this book is to be avoided. Quite the contrary in fact.
When we think of complex organizational decisions, individuals not in the corporate world seem to feel as though those methods do not apply to them. They are doing themselves a disservice to think so. Almost all decisions that are not automatic require some internal debate. In Think Again, a reader will be able to see how perhaps the internal debate should and or could be externalized for your decision making advantage. Isn’t that what we, as individuals and organizations are after, a decision making advantage, a more robust and reliable process and thereby hopefully fewer mistakes. If so, a read here can be a good investment.
Overall Score: 3.4 / 5
In a sentence: This is an in-depth look at how and why decisions go bad and is an informative, albeit at times a dry, read.
July 13, 2020
Very good book. Mostly case studies of specific ways that biases and thinking patterns can lead to suboptimal outcomes, with specific remedies. Things like assuming that a company conforms to a pattern you've seen before and ignoring relevant information, having a stake in it that biases your decisions, etc. Do recommend. Sorry for the brief review but the book I read immediately after this is weighing very heavily on my mind. Do read this is if you're in, or plan to be in, a leadership position where you're making decisions. Will reread.
October 4, 2021
Another problem solving book, but this time it focuses on people processes and biases. How to identity red flags and how to safeguard against.
Power balance, due diligence, triangulation, external expert advices, governance, this tool comes with plenty of advices against biases, self interest, and hidden non objective arguments. The examples are argued with explanations that leaves some doubt where the author got the explanation from, and the author is just making assumptions, this is why I don’t give it a 5
Power balance, due diligence, triangulation, external expert advices, governance, this tool comes with plenty of advices against biases, self interest, and hidden non objective arguments. The examples are argued with explanations that leaves some doubt where the author got the explanation from, and the author is just making assumptions, this is why I don’t give it a 5
January 17, 2021
It's clearly a unique book about great leaders making mistakes in decision. To me the most unique part of this book is that some of the leaders mentioned in the book gave even personal accounts on what motivated their decisions. I think this kind of attitude is what people should look for in leaders: being able to admit a bad decision and therefore enable learning from them.
March 25, 2018
Very insightful book on decision making
April 16, 2018
Many good points made in this book. The most frustrating thing is to watch those leading be willfully blind to their biases and make bad decisions.
July 16, 2021
I really appreciated Finkelstein's take on planning and moving forward. This was a good read, not too difficult, but very helpful.
August 17, 2022
Couldn't captivate me and probably not applicable for most people in daily life
April 30, 2023
It's good, but a bit pedestrian for my liking. Would've enjoyed it more in my teens than today in middle age.
March 9, 2017
Imagine Daniel Kahneman wrote a business book. That's this! We get tied to our own ideas because of emotional attachment or because we make comparison's to other situations we've experienced that aren't actually good comparisons. I like the brain science behind the theories, and I liked the scenarios (he used the dude who was in charge of declaring - or NOT declaring - Katrina an emergency... he didn't declare it for 24 hours) to which he applied his theories. The truth is, though, that hindsight is 20/20. So, even if government dude had read this book, I doubt he'd have made a different decision about Katrina!
That said, useful book for those wanting to understand decision making!
That said, useful book for those wanting to understand decision making!
January 9, 2013
If one is interested on why leaders often make bad decisions, companies make terrible decision that all went spiral downwards..perhaps this is a book that will give you a small glimpse on these leaders' mindset: often relate to emotional bias, personal expectation, personal presetting, and personal advantage as major reasons. Books are using Quaker/Gatorade, WWII Yamamoto, Rentokil, Wang Computer, WWII Operation Market Garden, BOOTS, Enron, WB Wolforitz, Mark Spenser/Brooks Brothers as some of the failure real events to depict several problems that have been extensively researched upon such as i) availability heuristic (recency/vividness bias, retreivability bias, presumed association bias) ii) representativeness heuristic (base rate bias, regression to mean bias) iii) Festinger's cognitive dissonance iv) Anchoring/Adjustment heuristic v) self serving bias vi) reciprocal altruism...this book uses a very soft and interesting approach to help one to understand the basic of our human/leaders/decision makers' blindness. Another way to look at decision process based on failing approach that lead to lethal or point of no return. This, I would recommend, to read rather than reading Kahneman's Thinking Fast and Slow..Highly recommend beginners..also main important helping us to use our objectivity to dissect and raise the red flag among a decision/decisions among individual/team/committee with proper approach and check/balance..must read!
October 10, 2012
I wish that I could give 4.5 stars, because it warrants more than 4.
The "erroneous decision" theory that the authors put forward is solid and well researched. I found it to apply to life and business in general, and the authors do a good job of not overselling the theory or their posited solutions. The remedies that they propose are grounded and properly couched in the traps that lie in the variability inherent in all decisions.
In essence, the worst thing that can happen isn't what you don't know, but "something you know for sure that just isn't true". So the authors focus on misleading experiences, judgements, attachments, and incentives.
Definitely worth a read. There was a little more neuro in the text than I thought was necessary. It could have been put in an appendix. But the neuro behind decision theory is fascinating stuff.
The "erroneous decision" theory that the authors put forward is solid and well researched. I found it to apply to life and business in general, and the authors do a good job of not overselling the theory or their posited solutions. The remedies that they propose are grounded and properly couched in the traps that lie in the variability inherent in all decisions.
In essence, the worst thing that can happen isn't what you don't know, but "something you know for sure that just isn't true". So the authors focus on misleading experiences, judgements, attachments, and incentives.
Definitely worth a read. There was a little more neuro in the text than I thought was necessary. It could have been put in an appendix. But the neuro behind decision theory is fascinating stuff.
January 30, 2017
This was a really well-done book, with a lot of in-depth analysis. The one knock is that it may have done more to illustrate the downstream effects of the bad decisions ro emphasize why it is important to pay attention and learn from it.
Knowing that misleading experiences are a big source of error is valid, however the psychology driving past successes, which then contribute to that misleading set of experiences, is stacked toward hubris-tinged high risk/high reward mindsets. It might be good to revisit the principal figures and companies in a "Where are they now?" segment to underline the need for safeguards and maybe burn through the burnish to make the point that the difference between skill and luck is the safeguard function.
Knowing that misleading experiences are a big source of error is valid, however the psychology driving past successes, which then contribute to that misleading set of experiences, is stacked toward hubris-tinged high risk/high reward mindsets. It might be good to revisit the principal figures and companies in a "Where are they now?" segment to underline the need for safeguards and maybe burn through the burnish to make the point that the difference between skill and luck is the safeguard function.
June 21, 2013
Do you belong to an organization?
"Think Again" is a useful book on how an organization can reduce and avoid leaders making bad decisions. This book gives many examples from business, government, and military on how skilled experienced leaders made costly blunders. That alone is entertaining while reading this book. The book also explains four major types of red flags that can signal a potential bad decision. And explains four major types of safeguards that will cause leaders to "think again" and catch early or prevent most mistakes before they are costly or disasters.
"Think Again" is a useful book on how an organization can reduce and avoid leaders making bad decisions. This book gives many examples from business, government, and military on how skilled experienced leaders made costly blunders. That alone is entertaining while reading this book. The book also explains four major types of red flags that can signal a potential bad decision. And explains four major types of safeguards that will cause leaders to "think again" and catch early or prevent most mistakes before they are costly or disasters.
June 27, 2016
Although I had a tremendously difficult time engaging with most of the book, I thankfully found the very last section worth the wait. The quality of the content is top notch throughout, it was just one of those that is hard to click with. But as I said, the wrap up made it all a great book to have read.
November 11, 2010
Not bad, and often kind of interesting. A little "corporate workshop" sometimes for my taste.
October 1, 2010
Safeguards for decisions
Red flags for decisions
Biases for decision making
Red flags for decisions
Biases for decision making
June 4, 2011
Good book on decision making. It will make you more self aware on how you make decisions.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews