Widen Options
What's one more way to do this?
Write the two options you're currently weighing. Now add a third — a genuinely different path, not a slight variation. Consider: What would someone in a completely different field do?
You're stuck choosing between two options and the debate feels gridlocked.
The decision is trivial or time-critical and adding options would only delay action.
Why it works
Most bad decisions start with a too-narrow frame — adding one option shifts the mind from defending a position to evaluating a field.
Binary choices — should I do A or B? — trigger a defensive mindset. You pick a side and argue for it. But the moment a third option enters the frame, something shifts: your brain moves from advocacy to evaluation. You stop defending a position and start comparing a field. Research consistently shows groups considering three or more options make better choices than those debating two, even when the third option gets rejected. If you genuinely can’t imagine a third path, your frame is too narrow to see the problem clearly.