There are two types of decision-makers. Read this to find out which one you are.
Are you someone that has values or someone that doesn’t.
Badaracco, a Harvard professor of ethics, gives five questions to help you deal with morally “grey” areas. We all like questions to help guide our decision-making. What questions we use says as much about us. Are we values-based or, well, not?
Let’s look at his questions.
- What are the net, net consequences of my actions? Remember Sam Bankman-Fried? Well, he was going to save the world with his wealth, eventually. That was the net, net consequence. Nothing nobler. He just had to play with the numbers a bit. Except, he’s serving 25 years in prison for fraud. Like Sam, I don’t have a crystal ball. Life is uncertain. This question is simply not useful… to anyone. It certainly didn’t help Sam.
- What are my core obligations? This is about values right? I mean, here, you might want to think about your own stakeholders, such as your family, or about your contractual obligations to your company. But, by limiting your question to just your core obligations, you are blocking out all of your other obligations. If you are values-based, you will want to consider all your obligations, not just your core obligations. If you find this question useful, you are a pragmatist.
- What will work in the world as it is? Really? What does this have to do with values? If we look at the world as it is, then… well, I don’t want to depress you by bringing up the wars, climate crisis, increasing wealth divides, and other problems, so let’s just say, when faced with two decisions, the decision that ignores values, is probably more likely to “work in the world as it is”. Now, if you’re a person of values, you might be thinking of changing the world as it is. You might think that the world as it is not how it ought to be. So, good for you. You’re a person of values. I’ll back you. If you’re looking for what will work in the world as it is, you are a pragmatist.
- Who are we? If at this stage, you look to the company’s statement of values, you are not a person of values. But good for you on approaching the corporate handbook. For those that don’t need this question, you are a person of values.
- What can I live with? If you need this question, you are not a person of values. Seriously, could the bar possibly be any lower? What can I live with? If you’re at the stage when you’re asking yourself whether you can live with a decision, you’ve gone waaay too far. Put down whatever it is you’re doing. Go talk to an ordinary person. Buy lunch for a hungry person. Give a coin to a child. Rethink your life. Rethink your career. Rethink who you surround yourself with. Think about how you’ve strayed so far from your sense of self that you are now at the very limits of your own self, wondering whether the evil you are about to do will make it impossible for even you to live with it.
So, which are you? Are you a person of values or someone who uses Badaracco’s decision-making techniques to justify the evil you unleash on the world in the name of pragmatism?
If you do welcome Badaracco’s questions to ease your conscience in going against your own values, you might not be a bad person. You might have tunnel vision and feel like you are limited in your options. You might need to do something bad to help someone close to you survive. You might not have the luxury of values. Next week, we will look at some decision-making techniques to help us to broaden our vision.