How to Spot and Sidestep Decision Traps in Leadership

We All Fall Into Decision Traps

Everyone has a decision weakness—even the sharpest leaders.

You know that gnawing moment when your thinking clouds, but you can’t see the trap you’re stepping into? Maybe it’s overconfidence, a gentle assumption you let slip, or being so invested in a project that you ignore it’s become a sunk cost.

I’ve done it. You’ve done it.

That doesn’t make it acceptable—especially if you lead others.

The Real Reason We Get Trapped

It’s not about intelligence or willpower.

These traps—confirmation bias, analysis paralysis, decision fatigue—hide in plain sight. But here’s the real insight:

Leaders who build strong decision-making systems and frameworks are far less likely to stumble.

What I’ve Seen: The Dangers of Flawed Reporting

I remember a department heads’ meeting where every leader shared slides packed only with positive metrics.

If a number looked bad, it vanished from the slides.

It became a contest in self-promotion, not a real look at the business.

Nobody wanted to admit a problem, and so nothing important actually got solved.

That’s how decision traps get baked in to an organisation.

How Amazon Avoids Decision Traps

Amazon faced these same issues—then built systems to beat them.

• They separated who defines, collects, and reports the metrics.
  • Executives set the rules.
  • The business intelligence team reported the numbers.
  • Departments supplied the data.
  • Result: No one team can twist the narrative.

And when it came to meetings, Amazon dropped PowerPoint.

In its place: a written six-page memo.

Everyone spent the first twenty minutes reading in silence.

No flair, no performance—just clear reasoning on the page.

If you wanted a decision, your logic had to stand up—facts first.

This approach wipes out overconfidence and confirmation bias because you can’t just “talk your way” to a win.

Metrics That Matter: Focusing Your Efforts

Another key lesson:

Measure what you can control.

• Don’t just count new subscribers (an output).
• Track actions your team can influence—like how many people actually saw the sign-up form.

These input metrics drive real results and help root out the false attribution errors that so often trip up businesses.

Simple Steps to Systemise Decision-Making

Most advice sticks to mindset.

Psychology matters—but systems matter more.

• Separate data reporting from those with a stake in the result.
• Ditch rehearsed slides for honest, structured documents.
• Set input metrics your team can actually control.
• Review major decisions with facts up front—not just a “best face forward”.

Your Challenge

Imagine your next big business decision—clear, considered, and unclouded by the traps of the past.

Amazon systemised decision-making and built something extraordinary.

Why shouldn’t you?

• Who oversees your organisation’s metrics—and is it working?
• Are your meetings designed to reveal the truth, or to avoid it?
• What changes would truly help your team sidestep the next decision trap?

Small changes in your systems can yield big results—and boost your confidence as a leader.

Ready to sidestep the trap?

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