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The Thinker's Toolkit: 14 Powerful Techniques for Problem Solving (Paperback)
by Morgan D. Jones
Category:
Problem solving techniques, Self improvement |
Market price: ¥ 168.00
MSL price:
¥ 158.00
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Pre-order item, lead time 3-7 weeks upon payment [ COD term does not apply to pre-order items ] |
MSL rating:
Good for Gifts
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MSL Pointer Review:
14 "tools" to address the weaknesses and improve the process of thinking - a hands-on manual on how to structure one's analysis and keep an open mind for alternatives. |
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Author: Morgan D. Jones
Publisher: Three Rivers Press
Pub. in: June, 1998
ISBN: 0812928083
Pages: 384
Measurements: 8.4 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
Origin of product: USA
Order code: BA01040
Other information: Revised edition ISBN-13: 978-0812928082
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- MSL Picks -
"Failure to consider alternatives fully is the most common cause of flawed or incomplete analysis. In other words, we must learn how to keep an open mind - one of the most difficult things we human beings can do."
The human mind is a fascinating thing. It creates a sense of self; it makes fast decisions; it interprets the past; it imagines the future; and yet it is a deceiver of the smartest kind. Let's face it: seeing is not believing. It is the other way around. People usually see only the things they believe in. Regardless of whether you specialize in a particular business skill, work in IT, are a consultant, or someone who wants to make a critical personal decision, this book will give you the necessary tools for decision making.
It has three parts:
(1) 50 pages on the basics of problem solving and decision making; (2) A collection of the fourteen tools that will make you an effective problem solver or decision maker; (3) Next steps for refining your problem solving.
Part 1 prepares you by getting you to think about thinking and providing insights to problem solving - sort of like a warm up before you engage in strenuous exercise. This is appropriate because as you work through the exercises associated with each tool you will be getting a strenuous mental workout - the author makes you think hard throughout the book.
The tools given in this book are the foundation of any problem solving process. Although the author presents them in their most basic form, there are endless variations of them. Each tool is presented by giving some background, situations in which the particular tool is most effective, step-by-step procedures for using the tool and exercises. Answers to each exercise, including worked examples, are provided in the back of the book.
The tools themselves are: (1) Problem restatement (2) PROs-CONs-FIXes (3) Divergent Thinking (4) Sorting, Chronologies and Timelines (5) Causal Flow Diagramming (6) Matrices (7) Decision/Event Trees (8) Weighted Ranking (9) Hypothesis Testing (10) Devil's Advocacy (11) Probability Tree (12) Utility Tree (13) Utility Matrix (14) Advanced Utility Analysis.
(From quoting Linda)
Target readers:
General readers.
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From the publisher
An invaluable resource for any manager or professional, this book offers a collection of proven, practical methods for simplifying any problem and making faster, better decisions every time.
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View all 5 comments |
Dennis (MSL quote), USA
<2007-07-04 00:00>
I consider this to be a very 'French' book. The French have the reputation of never getting a whole lot done due to their habit of extreme and unending analysis. No question goes unanswered. No possible rabbit trail left to surprise. Not a single contingency allowed. You'll be much more able to over-analyze using the techniques in The Thinker's Toolkit.
I actually love this book. It's basically a treatise on applied logic told in a very readable and useable way. Topics include developing weighted rankings, decision trees, the devil's advocate, and others. There are scores of graphics and asides to help in understanding the concepts.
Don't be put off by the title or the topics: the book is an excellent help for everyday decisions. For examples Jones discusses buying a car or purchasing insurance. He uses newspaper headlines throughout the book as topics for investigation. The entire work is very readable and equally as interesting. Definitely one of the best books on the subject. |
A reader (MSL quote), USA
<2007-07-04 00:00>
This book is a nice reference that captures the majority of problem solving techniques: a cookbook for decision making. The analytical techniques range from problem restatement to constructing an advanced utility matrix. It's useful in both daily life, business, and science.
Thinker's Toolkit also contains very useful examples and exercises. They immediately demonstrate to the reader where common decision making falls short. |
A reader (MSL quote), USA
<2007-07-04 00:00>
The early part of this book explores the way people think and discusses the types of thinking errors made by decision makers and others. This discussion is excellent background for understanding your own thinking errors and provides a firm rationale for the fourteen techniques that follow (and make up the bulk of this book). I am a university professor and regularily recommend this book to my students. |
A reader (MSL quote), USA
<2007-07-04 00:00>
This is a great book for anyone who needs to make important decisions. I'm with a professional services (consulting) firm, and we're about to make this book mandatory text for all our consultants. It's that good!
Morgan Jones starts off describing that human beings are bad decision makers, but kid themselves about their ability to make good decisions. Then, the book describes 14 tools that can be used to make decision making more structured and error-free. Each tool is described through a story, and has plenty of exercises to try out the tool. It even has the "solutions" at the back to verify your approach.
The book has a few shortcomings. For starters, it does not describe which situations each tool is most useful for. The sample exercises present the facts together - something that is unlikely to be replicated in real life. It also does not classify decisions as being big or small - some decisions are too small to apply structured tools presented here, while some decisions are too big to depend solely on these tools.
This book is written like a textbook. To get full value from The Thinker's Toolkit, you'd have to really participate in the exercises actively. If you're planning to skim through the book, then I'd recommend you drop this book and instead read "Making Great Decisions in Business and Life" by Henderson & Hooper.
To sum up, it's a great textbook if you're a consultant or would like to teach structured problem solving. Bring out your pen and paper! |
View all 5 comments |
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