by John Brooker | May 24, 2012 | Facilitate meetings, Innovate, Tools
Yes! And… Creative Gorilla # 134 How Might You Make Better Decisions? “The difference between a democracy and a dictatorship is that in a democracy you vote first and take orders later; in a dictatorship you don’t have to waste your time voting.” Charles Bukowski (1920 – 1994) American Poet and Novelist Would you like to make better choices? Imagine you are facilitating a meeting with a group and you have to choose from a range of options. One way you can do this is to explain each option briefly and take a vote. You count the votes for each item and choose the one with the most votes to move forward. Many people do this because it is quick. Another reason is that people sense “One person, one vote” is fair and democratic. “Taking a vote” happens quite often in organisations… and is quite often an unsatisfactory way of proceeding. In this article I will explain my reason for saying so and will also describe a tool I use a great deal when facilitating. Words have meaning! The term “voting” seems to bring out the competitive spirit in some people, so voting on an option becomes a win or lose scenario for them. To overcome this issue avoid saying, “Let’s take a vote”. Alternatively say, “Let’s choose how to move forward.” (I confess even after many years of facilitating, the word “vote” does pop out of my mouth now and again, so don’t feel despondent if this happens to you!). The “Dot Choice” Tool When making a choice, rather than vote by hand, have the group use sticky...
