What you're missing by focusing on the average | Sharon Zicherman
Mar 12, 2025
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Sharon Zicherman, a management consultant and cancer survivor, discusses the pitfalls of relying on averages when making critical decisions. He shares his personal experience with colorectal cancer to illustrate how averages can be misleading in assessing health outcomes. Zicherman advocates for a deeper understanding of risks by considering individual circumstances instead. By challenging conventional statistics, he encourages listeners to adopt a nuanced perspective for better decision-making in life-changing scenarios.
Relying solely on averages can lead to misleading conclusions, especially in critical decisions like personal health and investment risks.
Examining outliers and unique cases offers valuable insights, encouraging a more personalized approach to understanding data and decision-making.
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Questioning Averages in Health Outcomes
The discussion centers around the limitations of survival statistics, particularly in the context of medical diagnoses. A personal experience with colorectal cancer highlighted how broad averages can be misleading, as they often incorporate data from individuals with varied circumstances and health histories. By questioning the validity of these averages, one gains insight into the importance of considering individual factors that may significantly differ from the general population. This shift in perspective encourages seeking out more personalized metrics for understanding health outcomes rather than relying solely on generalized statistics.
The Importance of Considering Outliers
Focusing on averages can obscure crucial insights that may come from examining outliers or exceptional cases. In investment analysis, for instance, firms that survived economic downturns did so by not only looking at average default rates but also by evaluating potential worst-case scenarios. The narrative around studying spontaneous remissions in terminally ill patients exemplifies how outlier cases can defy conventional wisdom, potentially offering valuable lessons. Recognizing that averages might not apply in every situation encourages a more nuanced approach to decision-making and personal health outcomes.
Are you looking at the right data when making big decisions? Data deconstructor Sharon Zicherman challenges our reliance on averages, showing how they can be misleading — especially in life-changing moments. By rethinking the way we interpret data, he reveals a smarter approach to assessing risk and making better choices.