How to Make Smarter Decisions and Stop Making Foolish Ones

Name: How to Make Smarter Decisions and Stop Making Foolish Ones
Rating: 4.2 (57 reviews)

The way to making smarter, better, and more profitable choices in business and in life.

Created byBob Berkowitz, TJ Walker

Last updated 1/2026

English

What you'll learn

Avoid making bad decisions
Making smarter choices that will lead to successful outcomes
Steering clear of confirmation bias
The power of seeking out opinions that differ from yours
How to avoid making emotional decisions

Course content

2 sections • 43 lectures • 1h 2m total length

Introduction0:57
Develop strategies to make wiser, smarter decisions amid 35,000 daily choices, reducing outcomes like loss of clients, bankruptcy, divorce, prison, or health risks.
Examples of bad business decisions0:48
Examine examples of bad decisions, from emotional and financial unpreparedness to cheating, lying, and driving under the influence. See how preparation avoids mistakes like wasting inherited money or failing tests.
Don't make the mistake of confirmation bias1:29
Explore confirmation bias, the tendency to seek facts that support our views and hear only what we want to hear, narrowing objectivity and decision quality.
Group think can be bad thinking1:38
Recognize how groupthink extends confirmation bias when a boss surrounds himself with people who always agree, stifling dissent. Create an environment where everyone can speak up, even if they disagree.
Even US Presidents are susceptible to group think1:38
Recognize how groupthink forms when a leader surrounds themselves with compliant staff who never speak up. Foster an atmosphere where disagreement is safe and new ideas are heard.
Be open minded to new opinions1:25
Practice open mindedness by inviting new opinions. Apologize when you dismiss ideas and demonstrate an open ear to suggestions from the team.
The power of emotions in decision making5:14
Emotions drive most decisions more than logic, shaping purchases, hiring, and judgments. Learn to recognize real and emotional reasons, avoid approval seeking, and embrace honest evaluation even when wrong.
Symptoms of bad decision making1:52
Identify symptoms of bad decision making, such as the inability to admit mistakes, avoidance of examining one's reasoning, and prioritizing ego, fear, or approval over right action.
Indecision is a decision1:13
Recognize that indecision is a decision, stop playing it safe to avoid disapproval, and choose the best call for today and tomorrow as circumstances change.
What stops us from making good decisions1:17
Identify your blind spots and the know-it-all trap that blocks good decisions, including how you come across to others and can hurt feelings. Seek help and collaborate to improve decisions.
Instant gratification can lead to bad decisions1:33
Avoid instant gratification driving bad decisions by considering the ramifications, implications, and consequences before acting.
Not paying attention can lead to bad decisions1:14
Not paying attention to consumer trends leads to bad decisions; dairy and meat brands miss non-dairy and plant-based shifts. Elon Musk foresaw electric cars while others cling to old methods.
Assumptions can lead to bad decisions1:14
Avoid assuming others understand you; back up every statement with information, explain what you mean, and use clarifying points to foster smart conversation and better decisions.
Don't make decisions based on out of date information1:14
Avoid outdated information by eliminating assumptions and backing up statements with clear data. Explain what you mean, why it matters, and how it changes decisions for smarter conversations.
The law of unintended consequences1:17
Identify personal blind spots that distort how others see you and trigger unintended consequences in decisions. Embrace humility, seek help, and collaborate to overcome a know-it-all mindset.
Know your blind spots1:17
Identify your blind spots and understand how your personality and behavior come across to others. Overcome a know-it-all attitude by asking for help, collaborating, and seeking the best solution together.
Don't make a decision just for the money1:05
Learn to evaluate job decisions beyond pay by weighing work interest, colleagues, commute, travel, stress, and overall compensation to see the whole picture.
Do your homework1:27
Do your homework by researching the subject and consulting others with experience to inform decisions, evaluate reliability and safety, and guard against ego for future planning.
Smart decisions are made by people who pay attention to trends1:15
Pay attention to what's going on in the world and listen to experts translating major trends across politics, economy, culture, and society, like Tesla meeting affluent, eco-conscious buyers.
Reduce confirmation bias1:49
Learn to reduce confirmation bias by inviting disagreement and diverse viewpoints, as Lincoln's team of rivals and Mark Cuban advocate seeking criticism to reach wiser decisions.
Find a mentor; hire a coach1:45
Find a mentor within your company to leverage insider knowledge and guidance. Hire a seasoned coach with a proven track record to provide smart, mature advice.
Almost all big decisions involve a tradeoff1:26
Almost all big decisions involve a trade-off, requiring you to give up something; starting a business is a time drain and no free lunch, while promotion brings supervisory costs.
About me0:23
Master crafting impactful messages that reveal who you are, what you stand for, what you believe in, and why others should care, while making smarter decisions for leaders.

Best questions to ask yourself1:27
Do your homework and research the subject, then ask others about their experiences. Consider reliability, safety, dealer honesty, and past decisions to foresee long-term outcomes.
Tell stories--lots of them0:53
Tell stories to present accomplishments as a narrative, creating an emotional connection and memorable scenarios that stick in the listener's mind, boosting your interviewing impact.
Look like a winner0:52
Present yourself with a polished look to boost credibility and persuade investors, clients, and buyers. Inspect your outfit for wrinkles, stains, and scuffs, seek feedback from colleagues, and enter the meeting confidently, letting your product and service speak louder than your appearance.
What would you sacrifice to achieve your goals2:03
Reveal what you are willing to sacrifice to reach your goals, emphasizing time, effort, integrity, and learning from reputable coaches and sources.
How to achieve your hardest goals3:00
Learn to achieve your hardest goals by mastering active listening and seeking true comprehension. Be clear in what you’re saying and listen constantly to understand others.
The difference between hearing and listening0:58
Learn to distinguish hearing from listening by engaging attentively and without judgment, and treat speakers with dignity and respect to inform smarter decisions.
The power of listening1:36
Listen to what others are saying, and get it in writing. Embrace differing viewpoints, as Lincoln's team of rivals demonstrates, because it's not what you say, but what you hear.
Good communicators and bad ones3:22
Avoid ghosting by replying or scheduling a time, and develop listening through awareness, reception, engagement, understanding, persistence, and resolution, staying present and matching the other person’s tempo.
How to get positive behavior from others0:44
Focus on the situation, not the person, and use positive reinforcement for the behavior you like. Be objective, specify what you didn’t like, and offer concrete suggestions to improve.
It's business, not personal1:11
Handle customer complaints by staying calm and empathetic, focusing on the customer rather than personal feelings. Listen actively, de-escalate, and offer compensation to prevent disappointment.
How do you criticize your boss?1:33
Learn how to offer tactful, constructive criticism to your boss, emphasizing alternative ideas over direct blame, and tap input from every team member to improve service, efficiency, and profits.
The sandwich technique for criticism1:27
Understand the sandwich technique for criticism—start with a compliment, deliver the critique, then finish with another compliment, while considering concerns about disingenuousness and staying honest and constructive.
The power of your voice1:16
Explore how your voice conveys enthusiasm, energy, and care, using tone, volume, and pauses to emphasize key points and strengthen presence in decision making.
Focus on the situation, not the person0:44
Focus on the situation, not the person, and reinforce the desired behavior with positive reinforcement while being objective, specify what you did not like, and offer concrete suggestions to improve.
Listen without judgement0:58
Learn to listen attentively and without judgment, treating every speaker with dignity and respect. Apply this in business to inform smarter decisions and avoid foolish choices.
We have more control in life and business than we think1:34
Discover how choices shape life and business, from listening and integrity to hard work, preparation, consistency, and attitude, and learn to curate your influences.
Create your own personal board of directors1:02
Create your own personal board of directors, a trusted group that offers honest feedback and helps you improve. Use their insights to test ideas and respond to criticism.
Some people can never admit they are wrong1:14
Learn to work with insecure teammates who cannot admit fault by offering constructive feedback, inviting openness to growth, and making tough decisions about team fit.
What are. your messages?1:17
Craft your personal messages by highlighting what you stand for, what you achieved, and how you helped the company you worked for; share greatest hits to boost interview confidence.
Berate someone privately0:56
Learn to address mistakes with private feedback rather than public humiliation, preserving dignity, reducing embarrassment, and guiding smarter decisions in the workplace.

Requirements

No previous experience needed
The only thing you need is an open mind on how you can make more productive decisions

Description

We make tens of thousand of decisions every day. Admittedly, a lot of those decisions are not critical. But some decisions can make the difference between success and failure, profits and losses, and even life and death.

We have to be honest with ourselves that most major decisions involve a tradeoff. That raises an interesting question about decision making: what’s your tolerance for risk? What are you willing to give up to get something important?

Are you willing to make decisions based on objective data, facts, an accurate analysis and not emotions?

Here’s more about what you’ll learn in this course:

—The power of feelings in decision making.

—The need for instant gratification will lead us to make poor choices.

—Indecision is a decision. But is it the right one?

—Assumptions can be the enemy of smart decisions.

—Know your blind spots.

—Be aware of the law of unintended consequences.

Our goal in this course is to suggest ways that we can make smarter, better informed, wiser, more profitable decisions, and reduce the number of bad, self-destructive, not clearly thought out choices. We want to reduce those times when we’ve said to ourselves: “What was I thinking?”

I hope you’ll decide to watch this course and learn how to make more impactful, sharper, and beneficial decisions for every aspect of your life and your business.

Who this course is for:

This is for anyone who wants to make better business choices
How to avoid the traps of bad decision making

How to Make Smarter Decisions and Stop Making Foolish Ones

What you'll learn

Explore related topics

Course content

Introduction23 lectures • 35min

Additional material20 lectures • 28min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: