Unlocking Better Choices: An Introduction to Reflective Decision-Making

The Importance of Reflective Decision-Making in Overcoming Cognitive Biases

Daniel Kahneman recognised that decisions tend to follow two paths. He labelled them System one vs. System two thinking.

System one thinking leads to subconscious decisions; ones we describe as intuitive.

Kahneman described system 2 thinking as a slow and deliberate process. It is a broader cognitive process. We tend to use it in real-time to deal with current problems or decisions.

On the face of it, you might think system thinking is reflective decision-making.

In truth, System two thinking gives you a framework to invoke reflective decision-making. You can include reflective decision-making, or exclude it. But, by looking into the window of past decisions, your decision-making outcomes improve.

So, reflective decision-making improves your decisions.

Without reflective decision-making, you're excluding a decision analysis that improves your critical thinking. It's this aspect that makes reflective decision-making important.

A Case Study in Reflective Decision-Making: Enhancing Account Management

Managing clients is both challenging and rewarding.

One client came from a period of awful management. Their complaints exploded in a stormy meeting. My CEO moved swiftly, switching their account to me and making me the single point of contact.

The following weeks were intense.

I worked to resolve their complaints, which were many. Reporting was poor, complaint handling lacked structure, and regular meetings weren't happening.

As I put these things right, a set of learnings developed.

Six months later, we signed a new client.

I sat down with my CEO to discuss the account management aspect. As we pondered who and what we should do, I looked into my window of past experiences.

Through reflective thinking, we already had a framework to manage the account. It was less about who and more about how we would care for the account.

Reflective decision-making made this simpler to get to.  Without the insights from the past, and the critical thinking it inspired, we would have done the same.

Now, we had a method (single point of contact), and a system of account management to follow. Reporting, account reviews, and complaint handling didn't need reinventing.

It made growth easier, as we were able to limit the traditional chaos a new client brought with them.

System Two Thinking for Strategic Decision-Making: A Framework for Reflective Choices

System Two Thinking is a framework that facilitates reflective thinking.

Often the decision is more important, so your mind knows it should spend more time considering it. Daniel Kahneman described system 2 thinking as a slow and deliberate process. It's your chance to pause and thoroughly check the choices ahead.

But even then, your decision-making is far from simple. You have to consider:

• The circumstance
• Your cognitive biases
• Incomplete information
• Emotional (often temporary) feelings

Using reflective decision-making lets you draw on the experience of the past. It lets you apply some painfully won insights to your critical thinking.

This level of self-awareness in decision-making is hard to achieve.

But it often flags up weaknesses you may have in accepting incomplete information. Other aspects, especially with cognitive biases, come under consideration.

It highlights the importance of having an effective reflective decision-making process.

Developing a Reflective Decision-Making Strategy: Essential Tools for Critical Thinking

A good reflective decision-making strategy lets you exploit reflective thinking.

Here are some essential tools to develop your technique:

Make Time

Time is your friend. You need to make time to pause and think through your decisions before you make them. And you also need time after the decision to reflect on what happened.

Ask Critical Questions

Critical thinking is a vital part of reflective decision-making. To think through the decision, get good at questioning. Think of inverting the situation, as a way to see the situation in a new light.

Pre and post-mortems let you conduct decision analysis before and after the choice. Imagining a decision working out or not working out is a powerful way to think critically.

Seek Feedback

Different perspectives and opinions give new insights. The broader the view, the more informed you become before acting.

Keep a Decision Journal

Memories change with time. Hindsight bias loves to skip the tough times, or magnify them. Writing about your decisions, thoughts, and feelings helps keep your memories true.

Conclusion: Elevating Decision-Making Skills with Reflective Thinking and System Two Analysis

Reflective decision-making helps upgrade System Two thinking.

It gives you access to your past experiences to improve future choices. I'm not saying System Two excludes your past, but by being deliberate you can include this reflective practice.

The upsides are clear.

• Overcoming cognitive biases in decision-making.
• Improving your decision-making skills
• Learning how to reflect on decisions

So, before you start deciding, make sure you open your window to your past, where every classroom offers a lesson from your past.

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