The OODA Loop — How To Make Decisions At 1000 km/h
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The situation with the pandemic means we are stuck in a constant decision-making diagram. In PC (pre-covid) times, we had enough slack to balance the intense management and leadership needed.
I wondered if the military might provide some insight into making decisions under fire — metaphorically and literally. I discovered a model of decision making called the OODA Loop. Read on for an outline of the model and how you can use the techniques in times of uncertainty.
The OODA Loop
The OODA Loop has four phases: Observation, Orientation, Decide and Act.
It was developed in the late 70s by John Boyd, a military strategist, fighter pilot and Colonel in the United States Air Force.
Insights from studying air combat revealed patterns of decision making which Boyd established as the OODA Loop.
All decisions are based on observations of the evolving situation tempered with implicit filtering of the problem being addressed.
Here are the four stages. I tailored the descriptions and questions to how a leadership…
