This episode wraps up season three where we've explored the topic of thinking problems and we've looked at eight different biases that impede our decision making. A heuristic is a mental shortcut that helps us make quick, but often less than optimal decisions. The benefit is that they allow us to make quick decisions based on approximations, mental shortcuts, and educated guesses. But the downside is that they often lead us to make flawed decisions.Season three of How To Choose has demonstrated that rational economic theory doesn't explain the way that humans interact with the world. Behavioural economics shows that often our thinking and our decision making are not rational. The fictional species homo economicus that economists might talk about is dead. We are homo sapiens, we're flawed, we're messy.KEY TAKEAWAYSBefore making important judgments or decisions, pause. Ask yourself, what are the thinking problems that might be clouding my ability to think clearly and make a good decision here? And to avoid drawing a blank when you ask yourself that question, you need to spend some time reflecting on these different common biases.But don’t beat yourself up when you fall victim to one of them. They are so common, and we know that even experts in decision making, like judges, are susceptible. Observe when you may have demonstrated one of these biases and make sure you are learning from it so you can make a better decision next time.LINKSThere are so many great resources available online to dive more deeply into thinking problems, here are a few to get started:https://thedecisionlab.com/biaseshttps://insidebe.com/articles/heuristics/https://fs.blog/biases-and-blunders/IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...This is the end of season three, keeps your ears open for season four!For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

In this episode we explore the heuristic known as groupthink, we find it hard to resist the pull of the group, and often end up conforming. There are actually two types of group think. Informative influence is when you are the non-expert and you trust that the group knows better. The other is normative influence: when you actually know better than the group, but you decide to conform rather than rock the boat. So while you publicly conform and go along with the group, when you’re away from the group you would actually think and behave differently.KEY TAKEAWAYSThe group as a whole will benefit from hearing dissenting views. Without them, you end up with catastrophes like the Bay of Pigs.It happens most often in cohesive groups that don’t get a lot of outside views. It’s worse when there is a powerful, respected or important leader too. In the interest of group unity people willingly suppress their opinions. And sadly, often the first idea suggested by the leader will be adopted. One way to avoid this is to make sure your leader doesn’t say what their view of the situation is until they have heard from everyone else.Whatever group you’re in, you want to encourage diversity as homogenous groups, insulated from outside opinions are the most susceptible to groupthink. So think about how you can diversify your group, or for significant decisions you might want to invite an outside expert, or have someone play the Devil’s Advocate, particularly if your group is too homogenous.LINKSCheck out the book ‘You're About to Make a Terrible Mistake!’ by Olivier Sibony.Watch the scene from ‘Dead Poet’s Society’ that demonstrates our tendency to conformity.This video gives you an overview of the Milgram obedience experiment .The 1995 study by Hogg and Vaughan found that conformity reaches its full extent with 3-5 person majority, with additional numbers after that have little effectThis video takes you through the Asch conformity experiment.The 2015 McKinsey report ‘Why diversity matter’ highlights why we want diverse teams and management in particular.Check out the great Harvard Business Review article ‘Why Diverse Teams are Smarter’. WHAT TO DO?Make sure the leader of your group speaks last.Encourage diversity in your groups.Let people answer individually or anonymously, before sharing with the group.IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...In our next episode we have our season finale! Which will be a great opportunity to refresh your memory about everything you’ve learned so far, and learn a few new things as well.For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

Ever find yourself unwilling to give something up, despite being convinced that this is the best decision? You might be suffering from loss aversion.KEY TAKEAWAYSHumans have a stronger emotional response to a loss than to a gain of equal value. As the decision lab points out, it's better to not lose $20 than it is to find $20Loss aversion is closely related to something called the endowment effect where humans assign greater value to goods that they own than to identical goods they do not own. Our vulnerability to loss aversion is exploited by insurance companies and by any company that offers you a free trial - realising that it will be hard for you to give up that subscription once you have it.LINKSThis journal article describes observations of the body's physical response to loss aversion.WHAT TO DO?Pause and reflect - are you unhappy in an area of your life? What's stopping you from making a change? Sometimes the reason can be that we're more concerned about what we might lose than what we might gain. If so, loss aversion might be at play.Be aware next time an insurance company tries to get you to upgrade your cover. Loss aversion can make us irrationally afraid. IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...In our next episode we'll be talking about group think - don't miss it!For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

Optimism bias refers to our tendency to overestimate the likelihood of experiencing positive events and underestimate the likelihood of experiencing negative events. An unfounded optimism can actually cause you to choose behaviours that are not in your best interest, because you underestimate the chance that bad things will happen to you.KEY TAKEAWAYSThis is not about suppressing your optimism! But about not being naively optimistic. We don’t tend to update our beliefs with negative information as much as we do when compared to positive information.LINKSCheck out the TED talk by neuroscientist Tali Sharot which describes how optimism can act as a self-fulfilling prophecy. By believing that we will be successful, people are in fact more likely to be successful. This kind of optimism enhances well-being by creating a sense of anticipation about the future.We referred to the likelihood of getting into a crash in Australia. To explore these statistics further check out these websites including on the much higher rates of young men in crashes.Studies have found that those who expect success at exams may get over-confident and fail to prepare for tests as well as their more anxious peers.WHAT TO DO?To avoid the optimism bias you can use base rates, which if you missed it was discussed in episode 6 of this season! Base rates provide quantitative data to anchor our judgements, so they get us out of our emotional subconscious, reflexive decision making heads. Base rates can be the probability of an event occurring, the average time something takes, or whatever figure fits the situation–as long as the base rate is from existing data. Another way to avoid this bias it to try the ‘premortem approach’ which helps you predict areas of potential failure when starting a project. You, or your team need to imagine a year into the future when your project has failed. Write down what has gone wrong and why. By considering negative outcomes, we can resist the shortsightedness of optimism bias.IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...In our next episode we will be learning all about loss aversion.For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

How do you approach decisions or judgements that rest on the likelihood of something being true or the likelihood of something happening? Most of us find it difficult to take into account a critical factor known as the base rate.KEY TAKEAWAYSWhen it comes to making judgements and decisions, humans are hardwired to do a couple of things that are often - but not always - helpful.One thing that's true of all humans is that we love patterns. Our brain will try to match things we see and hear to patterns or templates that we've accepted as true. We see a person or hear a description of them (such as the fictional Tom who we describe in this episode) and we subconsciously form some assumptions about that person. Those subconscious assumptions can be exposed when we're asked to make a prediction about that person - and 'Presto', Tom becomes a librarian - or a tradesman.But when we're focused on a single individual or a particular situation, we're ignoring the broader population. Base rate neglect is that tendency to ignore the statistical likelihood of something being true. We also have a strong tendency to see ourselves as exceptional. For some reason we think that statistics don't apply to us. Sure, most registered actors don't find work - and those that do earn generally don't earn enough to make a living. But somehow we all think things will be different for us. This is base rate neglect.LINKSIf you haven't already got a copy, do yourself a favour and buy 'The Scout Mindset' by Julia Galef. Galef illustrates base rate neglect and a related thinking problem that we'll address next episode called 'optimism bias' really well in that book.Want to ponder false positives and false negatives a bit more. Check out https://www.mathsisfun.com/data/probability-false-negatives-positives.html (I can't guarantee that it will be fun, but it explains it pretty well!)Here's a nice little explanation of correlation vs causation if you want a refresher - https://www.understandinghealthresearch.org/useful-information/correlation-and-causation-15 And if you've never seen the spurious correlations website, it's hilarious: https://www.tylervigen.com/spurious-correlations (surely it can't be purely coincidental that per capita cheese consumption correlates with the number of people who died by becoming tangled in their bedsheets?!!WHAT TO DO?How do we reduce the impact of base rate neglect on our judgements and decisions? Pause. Yes, pause. That's essential for mitigating the impacts of all biases. Quick thinking (often called system 1 thinking) is useful when you see a bear in the woods, but less useful when you're deciding whether to invest your hard-earned savings into your friends' new start-up. And while you're pausing, ask - 'What do the statistics have to teach me here? What is the likelihood that... (fill in the blank - e.g. '...Tom is a librarian?' / '...John and Louise's cafe will be successful?' / '...I will win the lottery?'). We can all be fortunate. We can all become above average at some things - perhaps even exceptional and highly successful. But statistics matter and at some point, the bell curve tolls for us all!If you've enjoyed this episode, please take two minutes to rate us on your podcast player and tell a friend about the show.IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...Next episode we'll be talking about optimism bias - one we're both rather susceptible to!For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

Hindsight bias is our tendency to look back at unpredictable events and think it was easily predictable. It is also called the ‘knew-it-all-along’ effect.The hindsight bias can have a negative influence on our decision-making, as part of what helps us make good decisions is realistically assessing the consequences of our decisions. This bias can lead to overconfidence in our prediction ability. This can be bad, as overconfidence may lead us to take unnecessary risks.  According to Neal Roese and Kathleen Vohs, there are three levels that this occurs: memory distortion, a belief that a past event was inevitable or that it was foreseeable. So, the bias occurs when we misremember our past thoughts, think a past event was inevitable, and subsequently, believe the event was foreseeable.KEY TAKEAWAYSReflection is key to recognising hindsight bias. Our memories can be deceptive, it can take a lot of dissecting to figure out if you really did ‘know it all along’ or if you are just exhibiting hindsight bias. Maybe an event wasn’t as inevitable as you now think it was, imagine all the other ways that the scenario might have played out. Instead of assuming that you have incredible foresight, is there some other lesson you could learn from that event?LINKSElections, sporting matches, the share market are all areas where we exhibit hindsight bias. Did you really call the last election correctly, or were you like 20% of college students in one study and exhibited hindsight bias. It’s easy to do, and hard to recognise in ourselves.To learn about the fallibility of our memory check out ‘Remember’ by Lisa Genova.WHAT TO DO?Keeping track of your decisions, and your reasoning behind them is the easiest way to avoid hindsight bias. It will help you accurately reflect on your decision making process and to learn from your mistakes.IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...In our next episode we explore the impact of base rate neglect.For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

In this episode we explore the thinking problem known as 'availability bias'. Availability bias is the tendency to pay more attention to - and give more credence to - information that springs to mind quickly.KEY TAKEAWAYSOur memories are more fallible than many of us realise. For the vast majority of us, enduring episodic memories are only formed for events that have a strong impact on us.We also discuss the error of 'substitution' - the tendency to subconsciously reframe a difficult question so that we're answering something subtly different to the question we were asked.LINKSInterested to learn more about how our memory works? Check out the fascinating book 'Remember' by Lisa Genova.WHAT TO DO?Remember that your memory isn't always reliable (which given your memory's weaknesses might be hard to do!!) Just because a 'fact' or an incident jumps into your mind, that doesn't mean it is the most accurate or useful information to support a judgment or decision.IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...In our next episode we examine the unusual tendency towards 'hindsight bias'. You'll find it fascinating - just remember we told you so :)For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

In this episode we explore the heuristic known as the anchoring bias and just like physical anchors, they weigh us down, and influence our decisions. Anchoring bias occurs when we rely too heavily on pre-existing information or the first piece of information (the anchor) when making a decision.This impairs our decision making and judgement in many ways. Sometimes inadvertently, and sometimes it's used against us, to try and influence our decision making.Anchoring bias is one of the most robust effects in psychology. The bias also holds up even when the anchor is obtained by something completely random like rolling dice, and amazingly, even when researchers remind people that the anchor is irrelevant and should not be considered. We are that easy to influence! KEY TAKEAWAYSLike all of the biases we explore these season, learning about them will help you realise when you are about to succumb to one! So for anchoring, next time you are offered an initial anchor, pause, realise it’s an anchor and take the time to dissect that anchor. Do some research and don’t respond straight away, as we know we don’t adjust enough from the initial anchor. Or even better, you provide the anchor to others, this is especially useful in negotiations!LINKSSadly, expertise and experience do not reduce the anchoring effect. To learn more about some of the research on how judges are susceptible learn more here.When it comes to personal injury lawsuits, the more you ask the more you tend to get, the same is true in many other areas too, as everyone is susceptible to anchoring.WHAT TO DO?Despite the prevalence of anchoring, by listening to this episode you’ve taken the first step. The next step is to deliberately assess anchors you’re given. Look at the anchor and ask yourself why this isn’t accurate or fair. Another option is to make a judgement call before you’ve been anchored. When you go to buy a car, have a price that you think is fair for the year, make and model. Anchoring works best when we don’t know the answer or haven’t formed our judgement yet.IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...In our next episode we explore the impact of availability bias.For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

In this episode we explore the common thinking problem known as 'confirmation bias'. Confirmation bias is the tendency to pay more attention to - and give more credence to - information that supports our beliefs. In contrast, confirmation bias makes us less likely to listen to information that challenges our beliefs.KEY TAKEAWAYSYou can't completely overcome confirmation bias, but you can train yourself to pay more attention to the judgments you make.Whenever you make an assertion, or a generalisation, take a close look at it. What are you actually saying? And what data is this based on? Are you looking for data - or at least looking carefully at data - that disproves your belief? An excellent question to ask yourself is: ‘What would convince me that I was wrong?’ If your answer to this is 'Nothing! I know I'm right!!', then you might need to reflect a bit harder.When you ask someone for their opinion, are you really open to them disagreeing with your decision or judgment? Or are you really just hoping they'll agree with you and tell you that you're right? And when you do ask someone's opinion, you'll be more likely to get a fulsome response if you ask a neutral question such as 'I'm not asking you to tell me what to do, but what do you think the pros and cons might be if I chose this option?' If you ask leading, closed questions such as 'This is a good choice isn't it?', or even leading, open questions such as 'What do you think are the benefits of taking this job offer?', you are directing the other person to focus their answer quite narrowly and they are likely to apply a 'positive test strategy' when answering.LINKSWe strongly recommend the book 'The Scout Mindset' by Julia Galef. The basic premise is that we should avoid confirmation bias and instead pursue the truth. A great read (or listen if you buy it on Audible).IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...Join us next episode when we look at the weighty topic (haha) of anchoring bias!And if you've enjoyed the show, we'd be most grateful if you'd tell a friend (or an enemy whose behaviour you'd like to improve)!For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

In Season 3 of How to Choose, we’re exploring the topic of thinking problems or biases that get in the way of making accurate judgements and good decisions. We'll look at eight common problems and suggest some ways that we can reduce (but sadly not eliminate!) the impact of these problems.KEY TAKEAWAYSYou're probably not as rational as you'd like to think - but that's okay, that's how our brains have evolved. Emotional - non-rational - responses can sometimes offer survival benefits. Learning to recognise common thinking problems is a really important step towards making fewer poor judgements and decisions!LINKSIf today's topic piqued your interest and you'd like to learn more about behavioural economics, check out the resources tab on our website - https://goodbetterright.com.au/resource/ WHAT TO DO?Our brains don't allow us to be complete rational and logical - but don't despair. Acknowledging the impact irrational thinking can have on our decision making is a good first step. Listen to the rest of season 3 to learn more about these 'thinking problems' and how you can reduce the impact they have on your judgements and decisions. IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...In our next episode we explore the very common thinking problem called 'confirmation bias'. Don't miss it! For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

Buying gifts for our loved ones can be a meaningful and gratifying experience.It can also generate unwanted stress and financial pressure.In this special Christmas episode, we offer a few suggestions to help you navigate the 'gift buying' season.KEY TAKEAWAYSDon't fixate on finding the perfect gift - perfectionism exacerbates your stress and sets everyone up for disappointmentEstablish parameters - price limits, themes etc. can help reduce financial pressure at ChristmasFind out what they valueUnderstand their goalsThe thought really does count!Treasure the intangibles - friends, family, faith - think about what you value and focus on that. LINKSTo be in with a chance to win one of two copies of Julia Galef's excellent book The Scout Mindset, just fill out a short survey about our show. Here's the link: https://us20.list-manage.com/survey?u=a66c7aad9b1103029408dfb48&id=6efe250f51&attribution=falseGalef says of her book: "The Scout Mindset is about how, concretely, to keep from fooling yourself. Throughout the book, I lead the reader through key techniques for becoming aware of your own rationalisations, making more accurate predictions, learning from disagreements, and noticing what you’re wrong about."WHAT TO DO?We'll be back in February with season 3 - don't miss it!For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

In this episode we chat to former British Open squash champion, Anthony Ricketts, to learn about what decision making looked like for him as a professional athlete. We discuss the early decisions that set him on the pathway to success, the challenges of dealing with serious injuries, and the choices he faced as he tried to find a career after squash.KEY TAKEAWAYSSurrounding yourself with colleagues or mentors who are more skilful or experienced than you are is critical if you want to improve.And having a clear focus and a degree of single-mindedness is a key attribute if you want to reach 'elite levels' in your profession.WHAT TO DO?In addition to subscribing/following our podcast, you can sign up to follow our BLOG at https://goodbetterright.com.au/follow-good-better-right/ We'd love to hear from you as we plan for future seasons and episodes, and will be sending out a survey soon. Make sure you take the time to fill it out and let us know what you want to hear!For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

In this episode we chat to Melodie Potts-Rosevear CEO of Teach For Australia, a not-for-profit organisation. We hear how she went from a small town in the US, where she was the first in her family to go to college, to eventually founding an organisation in a foreign country with the incredibly hard and worthy goal of ending education disadvantage in Australia.KEY TAKEAWAYSSometimes we ignore pathways (perhaps subconsciously) because we don’t know someone else who has been there first. If you don’t have a broad network, deliberately seek out and engage with people in areas that seem interesting to you. Getting to know someone that has chosen a different path to you might make a switch not seem so daunting. Also, if you are in a leadership position, think about who you might be able to mentor or reach out to. ‘You can’t be what you can’t see’ and ‘you can’t try what you don’t know’ apply here.Interviews can be a great way to help you make a decision about your career path. See it as a chance to get to know the culture of the organisation you may be joining. This is your opportunity to interview them, while you’re being interviewed. Sometimes the best decision that you can make, is the decision that keeps your options open. Mel wasn’t sure what she wanted to do after college, so she ended up choosing management consultancy as a way to keep her options open for a while longer. A decision that ultimately led her to start Teach For Australia.As you get more senior, sometimes your decision is actually when to delegate. You need to be able to trust your team and know when you’re not the expert in the room, or when there’s someone who might be better suited to making the decision.Making a decision is only the first step, there is also a ‘doing something’ phase of decision making. Until you take action, all you have is an idea.Finally, Mel talks about leadership as imagining a different reality from what you see and making the decisions that will take others to that place.WHAT TO DO?If you're enjoying the topic of decision making and think our show could help others, please let them know about us. You can find the show on all major podcast apps and players! And come check out our website - www.goodbetterright.com.auIN OUR NEXT EPISODE...In our next episode we hear from Anthony Ricketts,  former British Open squash champion.

In this episode we chat with Doug Braiden, the College Principal at Faith Lutheran College in Queensland's Lockyer Valley. Doug discusses his surprising change of career from police detective to high school teacher and reflects on the challenges and opportunities of decision making in both professions.KEY TAKEAWAYSJust because things have always been done a certain way, doesn't mean there isn't a better way! To innovate well, understand the system you work in, understand the goals you're trying to achieve and think creatively about how those goals might be better achieved in that context. Be driven by your purpose, not your process.If you're considering a change of profession, consider whether there might be a role that sits like a 'shoulder' between the two jobs that could allow you to apply the skills from your old job in a new setting. For Doug, the shoulder between police work and education, was his role at the Queensland College of Teachers investigating allegations of teacher misconduct. In that role, Doug was apply a fairly unique skillset in a niche role, identifying opportunities to improve their business practices, before moving back into the school environment. A lot of brilliant innovation is born in those areas of overlap where creative thinkers apply knowledge from one field into another.The Queensland Police apply the SELF test to support decision making. Will the decision pass the Scrutiny of the public? Is it Ethical? Is it Lawful? And is it Fair? What this demonstrates is that complex decisions require us to consider different factors - if we think too narrowly, we can make poor choices.Finally, Doug's passion to want a make a difference and his belief that every individual has value and worth are what drive him. Finding the things that drive you and make you want to get out of bed each day is a great starting point when you're trying to make career choices.LINKSHow awesome was it to hear about some of the innovative approaches being applied at Faith Lutheran College! Check out their website to learn more - https://faithlc.qld.edu.au WHAT TO DO?If you're enjoying the topic of decision making and think our show could help others, please let them know about us. You can find the show on all major podcast apps and players! And come check out our website - www.goodbetterright.com.au IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...In our next episode, we hear from Melodie Potts-Rosevear, the CEO of the not-for-profit organisation Teach for Australia. Make sure you check it out!For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

In this episode multimedia artist Kirra Cheers reflects on intuition in decision making, planning and how important talent is to success KEY TAKEAWAYSBeing good at something isn't always enough to be successful, according to Kirra you need a certain level of obsession as well. It still pays to follow the advice to do something you're good at and enjoy, but perhaps before quitting your day job think about whether you have an obsession, or just a hobby.We talk about the importance of focusing on the important but not urgent tasks in Steven Covey's Urgent/Important matrix. Time spent here is what is likely to make you successful.Taking calculated risks is essential to progress in most endeavours but particularly in small businesses or creative pursuits. Kirra talks about how easy big - seemingly risky - decisions were for her because her goals have always been so clear. Check out out 'Stay or Go' episode in season two for more on this topic.LINKSIf you want to see some of Kirra's work check out her website: https://www.kirracheers.com/aboutOr her Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kirracheers/?hl=enOr her current creative collaborators, Mad Gene Media: https://madgenemedia.com/WHAT TO DO?If you enjoyed the show, drop us a message at contact@goodbetterright.com.au or leave a review on your podcast player. (Thanks in advance!)IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...We'll hear from Doug Braiden, a school principal and former police detective. He talks about how he has been able to transfer skills between what, on the surface, might seem very different professions. And he shares his passion about teaching and shares his vision about how secondary education can be transformed.For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

In this episode property investor Lachlan Vidler offers some useful tips on how to make investment decisions.KEY TAKEAWAYSGood decisions are informed by reliable data. Be wary of false confidence in areas where you don't have expertise (this is known as the Dunning-Kruger effect). Also be wary of confirmation bias an extremely common cognitive flaw in which we are much more interested in information that seems to confirm what we believe already. It takes practice (and humility), but you can train yourself to pay careful attention to data that challenges your beliefs - and by doing this, you reduce the chance that you'll make errors and poor decisions.Emotions shape our decisions. Learn to identify the emotions that are impacting you and give yourself time to reflect before deciding. This gives the rational parts of your brain - in your frontal lobes - an opportunity to shape your decisions, rather than just being driven by the emotional centres of the brain (the limbic region). LINKSIf you want to know more about Lachlan's company Atlas Property Group, here's the link - https://atlaspropertygroup.com.au Our recommended book of the week (or maybe even book of the year!) is 'The Scout Mindset' by Julia Galef. This is a great read (or listen - it's also available in audio form), and challenges us to abandon the soldier mindset that so often limits our ability to see the truth. Tess also mentioned Daniel Pink's book, which is titled 'Drive'.WHAT TO DO?If you enjoyed the show, drop us a message at contact@goodbetterright.com.au or leave a review on your podcast player. (Thanks in advance!)IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...We'll hear from Kirra Cheers, a New York-based photographer and artist, who'll talk about how she navigates big career decisions. Make sure you don't miss it!For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

In this episode we interview Allegra Spender an Australian politician and businesswoman who has been the member of parliament for Wentworth since 2022. She is the third generation of her family to sit in federal parliament, after her father and grandfather. Spender ran on a platform of action on climate change, political integrity, and gender equality. KEY TAKEAWAYSSpender highlights the benefits of 'try before you buy' before making a decision. That could mean job shadowing or working for a few days in a new role before making the decision to transfer permanently.While your values should align with your chosen career they are not enough by themselves. You also need to have the right skills and personality for the jobs that you do. Picking something on values alone does not guarantee success, for you or your employer.Decision making doesn't have to binary, sometimes the right decision might be multiple options, or deferring or delegating. Julia Galef in The Scout Mindset encapsulates this idea: ‘There are lots of ways to change the game board you’re playing on so that you end up with better choices, instead of simply resigning yourself to picking the least bad choice currently in front of you.’ WHAT TO DO?If you're enjoying the show and finding it useful, share something you've learned with a friend. You'll reinforce that learning for yourself, your friend will learn something, and we'll benefit by new people finding our show. It's win, win, win!IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...Tune in for our next episode as we chat with Lachlan Vidler, founder and owner of Atlas Property Group. He shares some excellent advice on starting a business as well as tips on personal property investment!For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

In this episode we interview entrepreneur Alex Leech to understand more about how he turned his coffee addiction into a thriving business.KEY TAKEAWAYSChoice can be an evolution, it’s not always a clear crossroads, but can be incremental. When creating a business it may be helpful to take a hedge pruning approach (see Season 1 Episode 4) and allow for a natural path of growth and expansion.Passion is essential in something as hard as starting a business. Extrinsic motivation will only take you so far, to make work seem less like work, do something that you are intrinsically motivated by.Knowing when to stop is sometimes a harder decision than whether to start. Opportunity cost should always be considered, as not making a decision is actually deciding to stay, see our Stay or Go episode for more on this. Alex Leech has a great moment of self-reflection when he talks about how he decided it was time to sell his business. WHAT TO DO?If you're enjoying the show and finding it useful, share something you've learned with a friend. You'll reinforce that learning for yourself, your friend will learn something, and we'll benefit by new people finding our show. It's win, win, win!IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...Tune in for our next episode as we chat with Member for Wentworth Allegra Spender MP. She is the third generation of her family to sit in federal parliament, after her father and grandfather. Spender ran on a platform of action on climate change, political integrity, and gender equality. She has some excellent insights into choosing the right role for your skills and values and reflects on her journey into politics as an independent.For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

In this episode we interview paramedic Jonno Holmes to understand more about how emergency workers make decisions under pressure.KEY TAKEAWAYSWhen trying to decide on a profession or change of career, it can be very valuable to consider what we want from a job - and this in turn requires good 'self-knowledge'. To build this self-awareness, pay attention to the things you enjoy. Do you prefer to work alone, or would you rather work with a team? Do you like to be outdoors, doing physical work, or are you more of a cerebral person who likes to read and think? Do you do your best work when your day is predictable, or do you thrive in unpredictable situations? As Socrates said - 'To know thyself is the beginning of wisdom'.When working in a team, poor communication can result in very poor decision making and can lead to critical errors. If you're part of a team and your work uses protocols or 'standard operating procedures', don't forget to communicate clearly so everyone understands what is happening at all times. WHAT TO DO?If you're enjoying the show and finding it useful, share something you've learned with a friend. You'll reinforce that learning for yourself, your friend will learn something, and we'll benefit by new people finding our show. It's win, win, win!IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...Tune in for our next episode as we chat with entrepreneur Alex Leech who explains how he took his passion for coffee and turned it into the thriving business 'Bellerophon Coffee'. And learn about how Alex's ability to reflect and think carefully helped him navigate some tough decisions along the way.For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith

In season 2, we cover the topic of decisions at work. We interview a range of fascinating guests with different professions who discuss how they chose their careers and what decision making looks like in their world.KEY TAKEAWAYSDecisions about work are challenging!We spend so much time at work! Various estimates suggest 13 years (between 90000 and 115000 hours) and about 15% of our life - or if we exclude the years that we spend sleeping or trying to get to sleep (33 years), then it’s around 26% of our waking hours. Many popular surnames - Smith for example - described an individual’s profession - which suggests that in olden days people probably didn’t change jobs that often! Our work is often a key way of describing and defining ourselves. And in many cultures, our work reflects our social status.Work can give us a means to make a difference in the world - we can take our passions and harness them to a group or an organisation who can help us achieve those goals.Work requires us to make a multitude of decisions - and generally our employer expects that we get those decisions right. The key factors that shape our decisions in our personal lives may be quite different from the key factors that are supposed to shape the decisions we make at work: values, goals, workplace rules, decision-making authority and implications.LINKSHere's an interesting article from Huff Post that breaks down our life into years spent doing different tasks: weve-broken-down-your-entire-life-into-years-spent-doing-tasks_n_61087617e4b0999d2084fec5Enmeshment is a term psychologists use to describe the situation in which the boundaries between people become blurred - that can sometimes happen in the workplace too and is described in this HBR article - https://hbr.org/2019/12/what-happens-when-your-career-becomes-your-whole-identityWHAT TO DO?Subscribe and follow - we 're pretty sure you'll find this season fascinating!IN OUR NEXT EPISODE...We speak with Jonno Holmes, who reveals what life as a senior paramedic looks like!For more episodes and information about decision making head over to our website: https://goodbetterright.com.au/podcast/Tessa Mudge and Ken Smith