Situations

Start from what you're dealing with.

Each situation collects the traps you might fall into and the tools that help.

• Arguing and debating14Disagreeing well, online or in person.
• Deciding under uncertainty70Choosing between options when you can’t know how things will turn out.
• Designing products36Deciding what to build and how people will use it.
• Estimating time and cost13Predicting how long something will take or what it will cost.
• Evaluating a claim51Deciding whether to believe something you’ve read, heard or been told.
• Fairness and ethics8Judging what’s fair, right or blameworthy.
• Forecasting28Predicting what will happen next.
• Group decisions and meetings31Deciding things together in a team, committee or meeting.
• Habits and self-control16Changing your own behavior and sticking to it.
• Judging people and hiring29Forming impressions of people, hiring, promoting or reviewing performance.
• Learning and memory17Studying, teaching, practising and remembering.
• Metrics and incentives20Setting targets, KPIs, bonuses or rules that shape behavior.
• Money and investing43Spending, saving, pricing and investing.
• Negotiating10Agreeing a price, a deal or terms with someone whose interests differ from yours.
• Organizations and bureaucracy40Why institutions behave the way they do.
• Persuading and explaining10Getting an idea across or changing someone’s mind.
• Reading data and statistics38Interpreting numbers, charts, studies or A/B test results.
• Relationships and conflict15Understanding the people close to you and why things go wrong.
• Risk and safety41Preventing failures, accidents and disasters.
• Running projects57Planning, prioritising and deciding whether to continue.
• Strategy and competition14Positioning against rivals and choosing where to play.
• Complex systems and policy49Intervening in systems with many moving parts.