I had to smile recently when a past delegate sent me a picture of their child’s school textbook (see picture below). A series of colourful pictures detailed four simple steps for dealing with challenges, and finding effective solutions:

1. Calm down
2. Understand the problem
3. Think of lots of solutions
4. Choose the best one!

We were amused that the format echoed the Forming Sound Judgement & Decision Making module of our Critical Thinking series.

It was also a useful reminder to me that although our module is based on extensive academic research and interviews with corporate leaders, truly effective insights often have universal application well beyond the corporate environment.

Whether you’re deciding who gets first dibs on the best toys in the sandbox, or balancing the tasks assigned to remote and office-based staff to meet a looming deadline, you could do far worse than start with those four steps.

From classroom to boardroom

Of course, I won’t pretend that equipping our delegates with the ability to form sound judgement in an ever-shifting corporate landscape is child’s play. After all, with unparalleled access to reports, date and analysis, effective decision making these days requires the ability to cut through a constant overflow of information.

A key part of the Forming Sound Judgement & Decision Making toolbox involves techniques that allow delegates to grasp the issues at hand, so they can navigate their way to an effective solution. We teach techniques to find the right questions to ask to get to the heart of a problem or challenge quickly and effectively.

It’s also about promoting diversity of thought, building capabilities and also confidence, to make the right calls at the right time. That means equipping people with the ability to rise above groupthink, and avoid the many other factors that lead to indecision and uncertainty.

Often, the best way to do that is to step back, find ways to make a complex problem simple, and move forward from there.

Those are skills that matter now more than ever when it comes to effective leadership in times of rapid change and uncertainty.

And I find it incredibly reassuring that some of the insights we teach our delegates, when boiled down to their simplest steps, are also helping young children deal with their own challenges. That universality tells me we are onto something here.

ABSTRACT deliver learning and development programmes that promote inclusive leadership, career management for women and other underrepresented groups, and building modern-day businesses’ fit for today’s social objectives. Get in touch to find out more.