The pros-and-cons table: A pros-and-cons table is the simplest decision tool. You write the good points on one side and the bad points on the other.
Write it on paper: Do it on paper, not only in your head. Seeing it written down makes the choice clearer.
How to do it: How to do it:
- Draw two columns: "Good points" and "Bad points".
- Write short points under each one, in plain words.
- Give each point a weight: is it a small thing, or a big thing? A small good point cannot beat a big bad point.
- Count the weight, not only the number of points.
Example
Fatima's job in another city: Fatima is offered a teaching job in another city. Her table looks like this:
- Good points: higher salary, a better school, new experience.
- Bad points: living away from her parents, higher rent, her children changing schools.
Weight beats counting: There are three good points and three bad points. But "living away from her parents" weighs more for her than the higher salary.
She decides to stay: She reads the table, sees the weight clearly, and decides to stay.
Key Terms
- Pros (فوائد) — the good points of an option
- Cons (نقصانات) — the bad points of an option
- Weight (وزن) — how important a point is, not just how many points there are
Fresh diagram to be drawn: A two-column pros-and-cons table, with a small "weight" mark on the heaviest point, in Project Desk colours.
- Write pros and cons on paper, not only in your head.
- Count the weight of each point, not only the number of points.