With a passion for decision making and helping humans and organizations make better decisions I pose the question in these final 90 days of 2019 – What decisions and changes will you make to enable 2020 to be better?
Believe it or not there are 90 days from the date of this Blog until the end of 2019 and a new decade begins! You may be accustomed to writing 90-day plans or even a fan of new year resolutions either way I invite you on a #decisionmaking journey with me.
I of course cannot expect you to consider such a decision if I don’t apply the same to myself! To assist with the process, I have considered decision making at both a micro (local) and macro (global) level.
Local – how the decisions you make may not only impact you so be mindful how your decisions impact others
Global – how is your decision making and calls to action for 2020 adding to the social license agenda, boosting the ecosystem and taking responsibility to be a part of positive change to do no harm for all
Let’s explore the 2020 #decisionmaking journey together:
Local ……Coffee shop
I begin this #decisionmaking journey and the decisions needed to enable 2020 to be better by reflecting on the sudden closing of my local coffee shop. In this reflection I am also reminded of Hugh Mackay’s strong call to action of the importance of compassion and how in our fast-paced times of uncertainty there is simply not enough compassion. The link between coffee and compassion is more than the letter ‘C’ as it represents the new kind of 21st century tribe. In our connected but distracted times often the sense of community or point of human connection happens as a result of your regular habits – such as going to the coffee shop. This translates that more often than not the place of your compassion giving and receiving can be wrapped around every day simple tasks – just like ordering your coffee.
There is another interesting level to my reflection as I don’t drink coffee and as an act of compassion, I get my husband’s morning coffee on my way back from the gym – his act of compassion is making us breakfast. One morning as I walked past my usual coffee shop all was closed up which was most unusual, and my immediate thoughts were oops someone has slept in – there will be some banter to be had with them later.
I return two hours later and to my shock the coffee shop looks the same – all closed dark and void of coffee or compassion – in fact it had taken on a different persona and one that was nowhere near as inviting. I was not prepared for my reaction and feeling of immediate panic and upon reflection I realize this was not necessarily related to my immediate decision as to where to get the mornings coffee but more about the loss of something important -my tribe. (Vale Coffee Box Pyrmont)
The coffee shop is such a great example of how one decision can have a knock-on effect way beyond your intentions. In the case of the coffee shop I will never know the realities behind their sudden closure. Word on the coffee tribe street is that the reasons were unknown but whatever the issues were they resulted in an immediate ceasing of the contract. The resulting loss I feel is equally shared between not being able to be prepared and having no time to plan for a closure or more to the point immediate departure.
Part of the Consequences Blog #57 reflection and #decisionmaking journey shows how the decision making experience can feel extremely uncomfortable when imposed upon you rather than part of a timeline that you have prepared. I possibly would have dismissed this reaction if my feeling of coffee shop loss hadn’t continued for as long as it has. Nearly a month on I still find myself speaking to dispersed members of my coffee tribe – who I see in various locations all doing the same thing as me – looking for a new tribe – and I don’t even drink coffee!
This coffee shop example provides a great reminder as you consider the decisions you are going to make to enable 2020 to be better. Understanding how the impact of your decisions may or may not be better for you it is also important to recognize the ripple effect and the impact your decisions have on others – especially at the global level.
Global ………Climate change strike
The United Nations Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) definitely help to add momentum to the global topic and experience of decision making at the macro level. To assist with the #decisionmaking journey in this Consequences Blog #57 I refer to global topic and SDG target 13 (outlined in Consequences Blog#33 – Climate action). On Friday 20th September 2019 many people across the globe made a decision to stand together to make a very strong point that better decisions need to be made with reference to Climate action. There is a strong correlation between decision making and actions as demonstrated by the words used in a protest – being the mobiliser of the desired decision making process.
The phrase mobilizing is a powerful enabler for making the decision to complete a 90-day plan or prepare for new year resolutions before the start of a new decade (2020). For the purpose of this exercise I encourage you to consider the global alignment in your decisions. As part of this encouragement I challenge you to explore the relationship between global decisions and what you decide to do on a daily basis. For example, it may have been great to support the 20th September Global Climate Change strikes but if your daily decisions and climate footprint is based on adding to the problem you are actually part of the discourse – no matter how small your climate footprint may be.
I am pleased to be adding to this 90-day decision making plan the concept of the ecosystem which was originally promoted by the United Nations Global Compact in their report titled Who Cares Wins: Connecting Financial Markets to a Changing World and further promoted through AICD as ESG – environmental; social; governance. The bottom line only counts if it is across ESG and can no longer continue to promote a market of winner takes all. It is imperative therefore that your decisions enable 2020 to be a better year and follow a similar suit coming from a position of abundance rather than scarcity.
Abundant decision making means making decisions that are broader than financial capital and broaden into the social and environmental call to action frame. There are three calls to action to assist with adopting an ESG frame in your decision making:
- Behave or lose your license – this is the new language around having a social license – something that must underpin every decision that is made – to do no harm
- ESG boosts returns – making decisions that only invest in sustainable futures
- Step up – taking responsibility means ensuring the 2020 decision making process is one where words and action align
In the words of Greta ‘how dare you’ speech to not include at least one of the ESG calls to actions as part of your 90-day plan and ongoing 2020 decision making process – cannot be forgiven – and is not acceptable.
Having considered a 90-day decision making plan to enable a better 2020 I encourage each one of us (myself included) to look at our local decision making and how it is placed within the global footprint. Be bold with the decisions you make – being bold enough to make the decisions that will count. Even if you are not into making new year resolutions being conscious of how you end a decade and begin another one through your decision making can only be a good thing.
Consequences –Dr Jayne Meyer Tucker, Activist and Author helps humans and organisations make better decisions during uncertainty. Drawing on her global experiences in social transformation and her PhD research exploring the systemic tension between structure (governance) and spontaneity (leadership), Jayne works to forge connections between investments and social impact and to promote a paradigm shift from output-focused responses to outcome-focused responses that transform decision making. Jayne has worked in Executive Board/CEO and consultancy roles with a number of NGO’s, corporates’ and government agencies in Australia and internationally.
Reference
Mackay, H (2018) Australia Reimagined Pan McMillan Australia
United Nations Global Compact (2004) Who Cares Wins: Connecting Financial Markets to a Changing World
