Option Solving Blog

As certain states have started opening their economies over the past days there will be increasing expectations for US President and his team to find ways to restore the electorate’s confidence. As that increases, so more states will either start opening up their economies while others will expand their openings. His challenge therefore is to focus on one key thing with other key factors coming to bear after that. Assuming therefore that we see this occur, let’s take a look at his key options. Your editor will therefore take the ‘bull by the horns.’

The most appropriate question appeared to be: “What should be the President’s primary emphasis to restore US confidence, post re-opening the economy; considering 1) a possible virus resurgence, 2) the economy could sink into a severe recession, 3) Presidential election in November, and 4) needs to display incisive leadership?” Again, we went with four key considerations that are most likely to affect his decision.  By keeping it to four, it reduces the complexity of our decision-making and recommendation when the moment arrives: despite there being others.

We then put together two yin and yang “bookends,” as these will help our intuitive minds to remain focused. Bookends such as these are vital for preventing our fertile intuitive minds from wandering and losing concentration. We are mostly unaware of how powerfully valuable but foot-loose our intuition can be unless we can properly keep it focused.   

Our bookends turned out to be: “Throw dice to pick option” – totally open to chance, and “Use emergency powers to re-open entire economy,” potential chaos & poor leadership. We italicized detractors associated with these least likely options. Even so, they will nudge ours/President’s intuitive thinking into high gear – see our Latest Worked Example.

Having challenged ourselves to produce at least five realistic options, you will see we produced six – prior to any emotional distancing, which is a form of objective thinking, before making our choice …perhaps after 2 hours, later in the day, or first thing tomorrow morning. You can replace our proposed options with any of your own. You can see one of our/their options as: Option D – All out approach to find infection remedy ASAP.

We gave ourselves overnight to sleep on it. The other and even better option is to step away from this pictograph, as indicated above, and then ask the President and his advisors to make a collective decision based upon anonymous votes. From there his team can put an action initiative together, while things are still fresh in their minds, to implement their decision.

If you have an example of your own, please share it with this blogger, through the COMMENTS area or contact him at peter@ileadershipsolutions.com – COVID-19.  Thanks Option Solving. (NOTE: Our next posting will be in two week’s time: “What options does the US President have to move ‘stalling States’ along?” Let’s have your COMMENTS or go to peter@ileadershipsolutions.com to connect with the blogger. Also consider buying the book: “Smart Decisions: Goodbye Problems, Hello Options” through amazon.com)

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