The 1-Door, 2-Door decision-making concept was coined by Amazon’s Jeff Bezos. The concept talks about making smart decisions. This approach can help you become better at decision-making.
- What is the 1-Door, 2-door decision-making concept?
According to Jeff Bezos, there are two basic kinds of decisions you can make:
1-Door/One-way door: These are decisions that are difficult or impossible to reverse once made. They have long-lasting consequences and require careful consideration before taking action.
2-Door/Two-way doors: These decisions can be easily reversed with some time and effort. They provide more flexibility, allowing you to try different approaches and learn from the outcomes.
Example of the 1-Door, 2-door decisions?
1-Door: Firing an employee, Selling the company
2-Door: Offering new service, Product pricing changes
While this concept may seem straightforward, implementing it in practice can be challenging. We often face decision paralysis, fearing the wrong choice or missing out on opportunities. Our biases can also cloud our judgment. Developing the discipline to differentiate between 1-Door and 2-Door decisions requires clarity and a deep understanding of your goals.
- Putting into practice
- Consider every decision as a two-way door initially.
- List the pros and cons of the potential two-way decisions.
- Then, mentally transform the decision into a one-way door and assess its pros and cons.
- Evaluate the opportunity cost associated with both doors.
- Set a defined timeframe to decide to avoid analysis paralysis.
- Make a choice and take action.
- Embrace an experimentation culture, learn from failures, and iterate to improve future decisions.
As Jeff Wilke, SVP of Consumer Business at Amazon said,
” A one-way door is a place with a decision if you walk through, and if you don’t like what you see on the other side, you can’t get back. You can’t get back to the initial state. A two-way door, you can walk through and can see what you find, and if you don’t like it, you can walk right back to the door and return to the state that you had before.”
Embracing this methodology can lead to better decision-making, innovative solutions, and growth in your product management journey. Failures are the best teachers.
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