Ask a Decision Engineer

In this fourth season of the podcast, I'm bringing folks on the show who have influenced my work on decision-making. And who better to start with than Seth Godin, without whom this podcast would not exist. Seth is an entrepreneur, an author of multiple New York Times bestselling books, writer of one of the most popular blogs in the world and a dear teacher of mine when it comes to dancing with the...

When facing big decisions, even the smartest people can get tied into knots. But it doesn't have to be that way. Hi, I'm Michelle Florendo. I studied decision engineering at Stanford and over the past 15 years, I've helped hundreds of people navigate complex decisions in their professional and personal lives. In season four of my podcast, Ask A Decision Engineer, I'll be interviewing guests on the...

In this Ask Me Anything (AMA) episode, I answer a question from a listener about how to tell whether the decisions he has made were the best ones. Listen in as I discuss how to reduce doubt after making a decision. Key topics covered in this episode: 1:55 - what this listener is really asking 4:02 - the short answer to the question 5:23 - what would be more helpful when facing this question 6:13 -...

In this Ask Me Anything (AMA) episode, I answer a question from a listener about how to approach decisions so that she can move past overwhelm and feel more confident in her decision making. Listen in as I discuss four key steps for her to tackle decisions with more ease. Key topics covered in this episode: 1:23 - Process orientation vs. outcome orientation 2:32 - Improving confidence by discardin...

Sometimes there are decisions that are so overwhelming and emotionally draining that what we decide to do to stay mentally and emotionally fit enough to make the decision is as important as the decision process itself. In today's episode, you'll hear from a guest client facing a difficult decision regarding care for her aging mother with a mental health condition. Learn strategies for working thro...

How do you figure out what to do after you graduate from college? In this episode, I show a college student how to clarify what she wants, reduce the stress of finding the perfect job, and avoid getting overwhelmed by uncertainties. Key topics we cover: 2:27 - How to reframe "I don't know what I want" 5:58 - How to use the "Happiness Pyramid" to clarify what you want 8:48 - What to do with advice...

Key topics we cover in this episode: 03:47 - What to do when your intellect says one thing and your intuition says another 07:21 - Breaking big decisions into smaller microdecisions 07:57 - Unpacking feelings about money and deciding to invest in one's business 14:05 - What's keeping her awake at night 17:17 - Clarifying her objectives 19:12 - What it means when there is an option you're not willi...

Today's episode touches on a number of different feelings: the excitement of a new path and the doubts around whether it will pan out the questioning around how much our desires are a result of the culture we've been surrounded by, or if deep down inside, we actually want something else. When we feel like we are swimming in an ocean of thoughts and feelings, it can be extremely useful to get those...

If you have already decided what course of action to take, but are having a hard time actually acting on it, explore: what emotions are arising as you think about taking action? where are those emotions coming from? if one of those emotions is fear or dread, what is on the other side of that? if what you fear were to come to fruition, what will you decide to do then? how might you keep the positiv...

We need to stop thinking that the best decisions are ones made in an emotional vacuum. There's a cost to ignoring how we feel. At best we leave useful data on the table. But at worst,  - we waste time beholden to emotions that do have a powerful hold over us - we make decisions that deliver on the opposite of what we actually want - we exhaust ourselves by only using a portion of the brainpower th...

When facing big decisions, even the smartest people can get tied into knots. But it doesn't have to be that way. Hi, I'm Michelle Florendo. I studied decision engineering at Stanford and over the past 15 years, I've helped hundreds of people navigate complex decisions in their professional and personal lives.  In season three of my podcast, Ask a Decision Engineer, we'll be tackling ALL THE FEELS....

  To learn more from Michelle about decision making, check out The Ask A Decision Engineer website Her Stanford Continuing Studies course Her self-paced course Decision Toolkit for Personal Decisions Her Decision Toolkit Coaches and Counselors virtual workshop on Maven About Michelle Florendo Michelle Florendo is a Stanford-trained decision engineer and executive coach who is on a mission to teach...

  To learn more from Michelle about decision making, check out The Ask A Decision Engineer website Her Stanford Continuing Studies course Her self-paced course Decision Toolkit for Personal Decisions Her Decision Toolkit Coaches and Counselors virtual workshop on Maven About Michelle Florendo Michelle Florendo is a Stanford-trained decision engineer and executive coach who is on a mission to teach...

  To learn more from Michelle about decision making, check out The Ask A Decision Engineer website Her Stanford Continuing Studies course Her self-paced course Decision Toolkit for Personal Decisions Her Decision Toolkit Coaches and Counselors virtual workshop on Maven About Michelle Florendo Michelle Florendo is a Stanford-trained decision engineer and executive coach who is on a mission to teach...

  To learn more from Michelle about decision making, check out The Ask A Decision Engineer website Her Stanford Continuing Studies course Her self-paced course Decision Toolkit for Personal Decisions Her Decision Toolkit Coaches and Counselors virtual workshop on Maven About Michelle Florendo Michelle Florendo is a Stanford-trained decision engineer and executive coach who is on a mission to teach...

  To learn more from Michelle about decision making, check out The Ask A Decision Engineer website Her Stanford Continuing Studies course Her self-paced course Decision Toolkit for Personal Decisions Her Decision Toolkit Coaches and Counselors virtual workshop on Maven About Michelle Florendo Michelle Florendo is a Stanford-trained decision engineer and executive coach who is on a mission to teach...

  To learn more from Michelle about decision making, check out The Ask A Decision Engineer website Her Stanford Continuing Studies course Her self-paced course Decision Toolkit for Personal Decisions Her Decision Toolkit Coaches and Counselors virtual workshop on Maven About Michelle Florendo Michelle Florendo is a Stanford-trained decision engineer and executive coach who is on a mission to teach...

In this episode Michelle shares what's at the root of decision paralysis and offers up tips on how to save time and energy in the decision making process   Resources mentioned in this episode: Srinivas Rao's Unmistakable Creative Tribe Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman The Paradox of Choice by Barry Schwartz Catching the Next Wave Podcast Summary: - The quality of a decision is separate an...

In this episode, Michelle talks about what a decision is and what it is not, while dispelling some commonly held misconceptions about decisions. Summary: Decisions are actions you take to influence the future. Decisions are not: - just about picking, they are also about process - about what is outside of your control, they are about where you have agency - about the past, they are forward looking...

  To learn more from Michelle about decision making, check out The Ask A Decision Engineer website Her Stanford Continuing Studies course Her self-paced course Decision Toolkit for Personal Decisions Her Decision Toolkit Coaches and Counselors virtual workshop on Maven About Michelle Florendo Michelle Florendo is a Stanford-trained decision engineer and executive coach who is on a mission to teach...

After launching my first pilot season in 2019 right before my baby was born, I'm back at it with new episodes. About Michelle Florendo Michelle Florendo is a Stanford-trained decision engineer and executive coach who is on a mission to teach people how to make decisions with less stress and more clarity. Over the past decade, she has coached and taught hundreds of leaders across tech, healthcare,...

  To learn more from Michelle about decision making, check out The Ask A Decision Engineer website Her Stanford Continuing Studies course Her self-paced course Decision Toolkit for Personal Decisions Her Decision Toolkit Coaches and Counselors virtual workshop on Maven   About Michelle Florendo Michelle Florendo is a Stanford-trained decision engineer and executive coach who is on a mission to tea...

  To learn more from Michelle about decision making, check out The Ask A Decision Engineer website Her Stanford Continuing Studies course Her self-paced course Decision Toolkit for Personal Decisions Her Decision Toolkit Coaches and Counselors virtual workshop on Maven   About Michelle Florendo Michelle Florendo is a Stanford-trained decision engineer and executive coach who is on a mission to tea...

  To learn more from Michelle about decision making, check out The Ask A Decision Engineer website Her Stanford Continuing Studies course Her self-paced course Decision Toolkit for Personal Decisions Her Decision Toolkit Coaches and Counselors virtual workshop on Maven   About Michelle Florendo Michelle Florendo is a Stanford-trained decision engineer and executive coach who is on a mission to tea...

  To learn more from Michelle about decision making, check out The Ask A Decision Engineer website Her Stanford Continuing Studies course Her self-paced course Decision Toolkit for Personal Decisions Her Decision Toolkit Coaches and Counselors virtual workshop on Maven   About Michelle Florendo Michelle Florendo is a Stanford-trained decision engineer and executive coach who is on a mission to tea...