a16z Podcast

How to Make Better Decisions

Aug 19, 2022

This discussion explores the art of decision-making, emphasizing how practice can sharpen our skills. Delve into cognitive biases and the importance of documenting decisions for better outcomes. Discover how trivial daily choices consume time and how the 'happiness test' can guide better resolutions. Learn about 'decision hygiene' and the value of diverse perspectives in startup environments. Lastly, uncover techniques to de-risk decisions, boosting confidence amidst uncertainty.

45:11

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Episode notes

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Quick takeaways

Embrace diverse perspectives to overcome biases and enhance learning in decision-making.

Combat cognitive illusions through reconstructing state of knowledge for comprehensive decision-making.

Promote decision hygiene by fostering accurate beliefs, diverse viewpoints, and solid evidentiary records for better decision processes.

Deep dives

Improving Decision-Making Quality

Enhancing decision-making is crucial for founders, investors, and builders who face numerous daily critical choices. Annie Duke and Jeff Jordan share insights on decision-making strategies from Annie's book 'How to Decide', focusing on creating high-quality decision processes to navigate uncertainty.

Intro

3min

Navigating Decision-Making in Uncertainty

14min

The Time We Waste on Everyday Decisions

2min

The Happiness Test in Decision-Making

3min

Mastering Decision Hygiene

21min

Enhancing Decision-Making Confidence Through De-Risking

3min

Can you get better at decision-making with practice? Many founders, investors, and builders must make many critical decisions, big and small, every day, and improving the quality of your decision-making process can become a big competitive advantage.

In this episode from October 2020, expert decision strategist, author and professional poker player, Annie Duke, joins a16z managing partner Jeff Jordan, to discuss some of the frameworks, strategies, and tactics for better decision-making by both individuals and organizations that she outlines in her second book, How to Decide. This was Annie’s second appearance on the podcast – she first joined a16z co-founder Marc Andreessen and host Sonal Chokshi to discuss her first book, Thinking in Bets, where they went deep into how to frame taking risks and placing bets, especially in the context of innovation.

You can read the full transcript of this episode here, and you can read the transcript of Annie's first episode on the a16z Podcast with Marc Andreessen here.