Principles of Decision Making: User’s Manual to Leadership

Interview with James Trunk, VP of Engineering at Griffin. He talks in-depth about coming up with his principles of decision making, the ways you can do the same, and their utility in leadership.

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In this interview we're covering:

• Utilizing your principles of decision making
• Role of decision principles in leadership
• Using decision principles with your team
• Using decision principles with your peers and manager
• Dangers of using decision principles
• Origins of the decision principles
• Tips to create your own decision principles
• Evolving your principles of decision making over time

Excerpt from the interview:

"I don’t think my principles should be applied by everyone. For example, if you keep picking safe bets, you’ll probably fail to create a competitive advantage as a startup. However, in a corporate environment, safe bets might be a better path for your career.

I’ve been collecting my decision principles over time, and they’re based on my experiences. I’ve done a lot of reflection on what has and hasn’t gone well, and which principles have helped me make better decisions and which haven’t. They change over time, and I’ve been keeping track of them over the years.

I recommend every leader to come up with their own principles of decision making. You don’t have to treat them as absolute truth. Use them as guidelines that remind you to stop and reflect on whether you’re headed in the right direction."

Click here to read the full interview!