Recently I listened to Jim Kwik’s podcast number 178 on how to make better decisions. This theory is based on Edward De Bono’s Six Thinking Hats and was really interesting to listen to. Essentially there are six different coloured hats, each with a different purpose, to help you make better decisions in almost every aspect of your life. So I thought I would put it to the test:

White information hat

White like a lab coat. This hat is meant to be logical, based on analysis or science. So in my test of figuring out where to live this would be based on: affordability and commutability. Type and age of property would fit under this hat too, and whether there is a garden or parking and other practical amenities nearby.

Red feeling hat

Red like a heart. This hat is based on emotions and feelings. So I suppose that would be choosing a place to live based on how a city or town or area makes you feel. I guess this thought process would have been better if I visited potential areas first. I have never been to any of the places that I’m currently looking into moving to! From some googling it is clear that some areas look nicer than others, especially towns close to rivers.

Yellow optimistic hat

Yellow like the sun. This hat is based on good and optimistic things. So moving away to somewhere quieter, less noise, more open spaces and greenery. Some places on my location list are indeed greener than others. Some bigger areas don’t seem to have a leaf in sight.

Black safety hat

Black like a judge’s robes. This hat is meant to identify risks and problems. One major problem that we’ve come across recently is that train season tickets are super expensive. So we may be able to afford the house itself and perhaps the season tickets, but then not much else. Also there is the future potential of not being so flexible to work from home and therefore having a long commute doesn’t seem great for our mental health.

Green creative thinking hat

Green like grass. This hat is to help think outside the box, of new ideas, and for something different. I suppose we could continue renting forever and stay where we are? That’s sure different and completely not within the box of the objective. Or perhaps move abroad, which is definitely outside the box. Designing and building our own house, Grand Designs-style? Maybe moving abroad seems easier.

Blue manager hat

Blue like the sky. This hat is meant to be the manager of hats, listening to all the other hats. Well maybe I didn’t quite do this right. I suppose the example I’m using is very broad and it’s not like I have two properties that I’m trying to decide between, it’s a long list of potential places. Some are definite no’s, some yes’es, some maybe’s.

I think this thought process is a good structured way to help decide on things if there aren’t too many options; like deciding between buying two cars. Maybe next time I have to decide between two things I’ll give this structured thought process another go.