{"id":568,"date":"2025-03-25T12:25:14","date_gmt":"2025-03-25T12:25:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/niblits.com\/blog\/?p=568"},"modified":"2025-03-28T14:15:49","modified_gmt":"2025-03-28T14:15:49","slug":"the-road-less-stupid-simple-framework-for-better-decisions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/niblits.com\/blog\/uncategorized\/the-road-less-stupid-simple-framework-for-better-decisions\/","title":{"rendered":"The Road Less Stupid &#8211; Simple Framework for Better Decisions"},"content":{"rendered":"<table cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" bgcolor=\"#F6F6F9\" style=\"width:100%;margin:0 auto;background-color:#F6F6F9\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<div class=\"ck-section\" style=\"margin:30px auto 0px auto\">\n<table cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" style=\"width:100%;margin:0 auto;max-width:800px\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"800\" style=\"background-color:#ffffff;border-radius:0px\" bgcolor=\"#ffffff\">\n<div class=\"ck-inner-section ck-padding-left-mobile-friendly ck-padding-right-mobile-friendly\" style=\"padding:40px 36px 24px 36px\">\n<div style=\"margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\">\n<table class=\"ck-layout-block ck-layout-stack\" width=\"100%\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" bgcolor=\"transparent\" style=\"padding:0px 0px 0px 0px;margin:0px 0px 0px 0px;border-radius:0px;overflow:hidden\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td class=\"ck-column ck-column-stack ck-column-1\" width=\"50%\" style=\"background-size:cover;background-position:center;border-radius:0px;vertical-align:top\">\n<div style=\"padding:0px 0px 0px 0px\">\n<table width=\"100%\" border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" style=\"text-align:center;float:none\" class=\"email-image\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td align=\"center\">\n<figure style=\"margin-top:12px;margin-bottom:12px;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:800px;width:100%\">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/embed.filekitcdn.com\/e\/oh4UyimtaVpDdq4v3xpjNZ\/EYj7oHsTocEWDETZgrRxx\" width=\"800\" height=\"auto\" style=\"border-radius:4px 4px 4px 4px;width:800px;height:auto;object-fit:contain\"><\/div><figcaption style=\"text-align:center\">\u200b<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left:20px\"><\/td>\n<td class=\"ck-column ck-column-2\" width=\"50%\" style=\"background-size:cover;background-position:center;border-radius:0px;vertical-align:top\">\n<div style=\"padding:0px 0px 0px 0px\">\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:16px;color:#4F4F4F;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5;margin-top:8px;margin-bottom:8px\" class=\"\">\u200b<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ck-section\" style=\"margin:0px auto 0px auto\">\n<table cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" style=\"width:100%;margin:0 auto;max-width:800px\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"800\" style=\"background-color:#fff;border-radius:0px\" bgcolor=\"#fff\">\n<div class=\"ck-inner-section ck-padding-left-mobile-friendly ck-padding-right-mobile-friendly\" style=\"padding:30px 36px 40px 36px\">\n<div style=\"margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\">\n<table class=\"ck-layout-block ck-layout-stack\" width=\"100%\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" bgcolor=\"#ffffff\" style=\"background-color:#ffffff;padding:0px 0px 0px 0px;margin:24px 0px 24px 0px;border-radius:0px;overflow:hidden\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td class=\"ck-column ck-column-stack ck-column-1\" width=\"25%\" style=\"background-size:cover;background-position:center;border-radius:0px;vertical-align:top\">\n<div style=\"padding:0px 0px 0px 0px\">\n<table width=\"100%\" border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" style=\"text-align:center;float:none\" class=\"email-image\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td align=\"center\">\n<figure style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:100%;width:100%\"><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3DBqdl7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" class=\"kit-image-link\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/embed.filekitcdn.com\/e\/oh4UyimtaVpDdq4v3xpjNZ\/n8HQe7EFfcuDtyvZRtPukT\" width=\"100%\" height=\"auto\" style=\"border-radius:0px;width:100%;height:auto;object-fit:contain\"><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left:30px\"><\/td>\n<td class=\"ck-column ck-column-2\" width=\"75%\" style=\"background-size:cover;background-position:center;border-radius:0px;vertical-align:middle\">\n<div style=\"padding:0px 0px 0px 0px\">\n<h2 style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:32px;color:#000000;font-weight:700;line-height:1.25;margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0\" class=\"\"><strong>5 Disciplines for Better Decisions (and Preventing Business Disasters)<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5\" class=\"\">Hi Reader,<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5\" class=\"\">\ud83d\udca1 <strong>Today&#8217;s Niblit:<\/strong> Strategic thinking requires a structured framework to be effective. Keith Cunningham&#8217;s &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3DBqdl7\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"ck-link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" style=\"color:#FF630B\">The Road Less Stupid<\/a>&#8221; outlines five core disciplines that form the foundation of productive thinking sessions and protect businesses from costly mistakes.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5\" class=\"\">\ud83d\udd11 <strong>Key Insight:<\/strong> Random thinking produces random results. He outlines five core disciplines of thinking\u2014<\/p>\n<ol class=\"unordered_list\" style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5;text-align:left\">\n<li class=\"list_item\"><span>Finding the unasked question<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"list_item\"><span>Separating problems from symptoms<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"list_item\"><span>Checking assumptions<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"list_item\"><span>Considering consequences, and <\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"list_item\"><span>Creating execution plans<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5\" class=\"\">These disciplines provide a foundational, systematic approach to business decision-making.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5\" class=\"\">Imagine trying to diagnose a car problem by randomly checking components with no method. You might eventually find the issue, but you&#8217;ll waste enormous time and resources. Similarly, unstructured thinking leads to hit-or-miss business decisions with potentially devastating consequences.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5\" class=\"\">What makes this framework so powerful is how it addresses both strategic clarity and execution planning. By working through each discipline systematically, you prevent the common entrepreneurial mistake of confusing activity with productivity and ensure that solutions target the right problems.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5\" class=\"\">\ud83e\udd89 <strong>Nibble of Wisdom:<\/strong> &#8220;Having the right answer is smart. Having the right question is genius.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5\" class=\"\">\ud83d\udee0\ufe0f <strong>Practical Tip:<\/strong> In your next thinking session, write down your initial problem statement. Then reframe it as a &#8220;How might I&#8230;&#8221; question to spark more creative solutions.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5\" class=\"\">\ud83d\ude80 <strong>Quick Action:<\/strong> Take 10 minutes right now to identify one business challenge and apply the first discipline: reframe it as an unasked question. For example, change &#8220;Our marketing isn&#8217;t working&#8221; to &#8220;How might we identify which marketing channels are most effective for our ideal customers?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5\" class=\"\">\ud83d\udd0d <strong>Further Exploration:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul class=\"unordered_list\" style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5;text-align:left\">\n<li class=\"list_item\"><span>The discipline of separating problems from symptoms uses a technique similar to <a href=\"https:\/\/asq.org\/quality-resources\/root-cause-analysis\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"ck-link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" style=\"color:#FF630B\">root cause analysis<\/a>. Understanding this methodology can dramatically improve your problem-solving capabilities.<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"list_item\"><span>Consider how often you check your assumptions versus accepting them as facts. What unexamined beliefs might be limiting your business?<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"list_item\"><span>List the second-order consequences of a major decision you&#8217;re currently contemplating.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5\" class=\"\">\ud83c\udfac <strong>Wrapup:<\/strong> The five disciplines of thinking transform chaotic business problem-solving into a systematic approach that minimizes risk and maximizes opportunity. By implementing this framework, you&#8217;ll make clearer decisions and build a more successful business.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5\" class=\"\">\ud83d\udd17 <strong>Links:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul class=\"unordered_list\" style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5;text-align:left\">\n<li class=\"list_item\"><span>Check out <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3DBqdl7\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"ck-link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" style=\"color:#FF630B\"><em>The Road Less Stupid<\/em> by Keith J. Cunningham<\/a> on Amazon<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"list_item\"><span>\u200b<a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/49WW0sB\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"ck-link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" style=\"color:#FF630B\"><em>The Road Less Stupid<\/em> on Kindle<\/a>\u200b<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"list_item\"><span>\u200b<a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3DKlvBm\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"ck-link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" style=\"color:#FF630B\"><em>The Road Less Stupid<\/em> Audiobook<\/a>\u200b<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5\" class=\"\"><strong>Thinking systematically,<\/strong> <\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Arial, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#333333;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5\" class=\"\">Tom &#8220;mastering one discipline at a time&#8221; Bernthal<\/p>\n<table class=\"ck-layout-block ck-layout-stack\" width=\"100%\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" bgcolor=\"#f9f9f9\" style=\"background-color:#f9f9f9;padding:18px 18px 18px 18px;margin:24px 0px 24px 0px;border-radius:0px;overflow:hidden\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td class=\"ck-column ck-column-stack ck-column-1\" width=\"35%\" style=\"background-size:cover;background-position:center;border-radius:0px;vertical-align:top\">\n<div style=\"padding:0px 0px 0px 0px\">\n<table width=\"100%\" border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" style=\"text-align:center;float:none\" class=\"email-image\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td align=\"center\">\n<figure style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:200px;width:100%\">\n<div>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/embed.filekitcdn.com\/e\/oh4UyimtaVpDdq4v3xpjNZ\/2FXTkbpNBwAh35ubbC2sG7\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"200\" style=\"border-radius:9999px 9999px 9999px 9999px;width:200px;height:200px;object-fit:cover\">\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<table width=\"100%\" border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" style=\"text-align:center;float:none\" class=\"email-image\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td align=\"center\">\n<figure style=\"margin-top:12px;margin-bottom:12px;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:800px;width:100%\">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/embed.filekitcdn.com\/e\/oh4UyimtaVpDdq4v3xpjNZ\/2CrcobkpKHMN2FyPFwC39G\" width=\"800\" height=\"auto\" style=\"border-radius:4px 4px 4px 4px;width:800px;height:auto;object-fit:contain\"><\/div><figcaption style=\"text-align:center\">Tom Bernthal, Chief Niblr<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding-left:30px\"><\/td>\n<td class=\"ck-column ck-column-2\" width=\"65%\" style=\"background-size:cover;background-position:center;border-radius:0px;vertical-align:middle\">\n<div style=\"padding:0px 0px 0px 0px\">\n<h2 style=\"font-family:Charter, Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;font-size:32px;color:#000000;font-weight:500;line-height:1.25;margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0\" class=\"\">Thank you!<\/h2>\n<p style=\"font-family:Verdana, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#4d4d4d;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5;margin-top:8px;margin-bottom:8px\" class=\"\">Thank you for joining the Niblits community. If you have questions, suggestions or want to chat, hit reply.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Verdana, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#4d4d4d;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5;margin-top:8px;margin-bottom:8px\" class=\"\"><strong>\u200b<\/strong><a href=\"mailto:?subject=Check%20this%20out...&amp;body=I%20just%20joined%20a%20free%20daily%20newlsetter%20called%20Niblits.%20They%20send%20you%20one%20key%20idea%20from%20popular%20books%20to%20grow%20a%20little%20smarter%20every%20day.%0A%0AIt's%20a%20quick%203-minute%20read%20and%20I%20thought%20you%20might%20like%20it%20too.%0A%0AYou%20can%20check%20it%20out%20here%3A%20%20https%3A%2F%2Fniblits.com%0A%0A\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"ck-link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" style=\"color:#FF630B\"><strong>Share Niblits with friends<\/strong><\/a><strong>.<\/strong> <\/p>\n<p style=\"font-family:Verdana, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:20px;color:#4d4d4d;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5;text-align:left;margin-top:8px;margin-bottom:8px\" class=\"\">If you&#8217;d like to get access to more books and ideas, <a href=\"https:\/\/join.niblits.com\/products\/tips-are-welcome\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"ck-link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" style=\"color:#FF630B\">tap here to see how you can help me<strong> <\/strong>grow Niblits faster<\/a>!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ck-section\" style=\"margin:0px auto 40px auto\">\n<table cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" style=\"width:100%;margin:0 auto;max-width:800px\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"800\" style=\"background-color:#fff;border-radius:0px;border-top:solid 1px #F2F2F2\" bgcolor=\"#fff\">\n<div class=\"ck-inner-section ck-padding-left-mobile-friendly ck-padding-right-mobile-friendly\" style=\"padding:40px 40px 40px 40px\">\n<div style=\"margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\">\n<p style=\"font-family:-apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, sans-serif;font-size:15px;color:#656565;font-weight:400;line-height:1.5;text-align:center\" class=\"\"><span style=\"font-size:12\"> <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/preview.convertkit-mail2.com\/preferences\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"ck-link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" style=\"color:#808080\"><span style=\"font-size:12\">Update your Niblits newsletter options<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-size:12\"> | <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/preview.convertkit-mail2.com\/unsubscribe\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"ck-link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" style=\"color:#808080\"><span style=\"font-size:12\">Unsubscribe<br \/>\u200b<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-size:12\">113 Cherry St #92768, Seattle, WA 98104-2205<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>5 Disciplines for Better Decisions (and Preventing Business Disasters) Hi Reader, \ud83d\udca1 Today&#8217;s Niblit: Strategic thinking requires a structured framework to be effective. Keith Cunningham&#8217;s &#8220;The Road Less Stupid&#8221; outlines five core disciplines that form the foundation of productive thinking sessions and protect businesses from costly mistakes. \ud83d\udd11 Key Insight: Random thinking produces random results. He outlines five core disciplines of thinking\u2014 Finding the unasked question Separating problems&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":570,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_convertkit_action_broadcast_export":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"niblit":[],"class_list":["post-568","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/niblits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/568","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/niblits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/niblits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/niblits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/niblits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=568"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/niblits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/568\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":569,"href":"https:\/\/niblits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/568\/revisions\/569"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/niblits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/570"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/niblits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=568"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/niblits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=568"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/niblits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=568"},{"taxonomy":"niblit","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/niblits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/niblit?post=568"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}