Short guides on deciding and on ranking. Each one has a working example inside it, so you can try the method on the page before you try it on your own list.
They all rest on the same idea. A long list is hard because it asks you to think about every option at the same time, and nobody can do that. Two options is a much smaller question, and small questions are ones you can answer honestly. Answer enough of them and the list gives you an answer.
Nothing in these guides scores your options or tells you what to pick. Every answer is yours, and the method only keeps track of what you said.
- Compare two options at a timeWhat pairwise comparison is, why it beats a scoring table, and how seven questions get you from eight options to one answer.
- Rank a long list of optionsHow to put a list in order when you cannot see the whole order at once, and why dragging rows around does not work.
- Narrow down a name shortlistWhy a shortlist stops getting shorter when you like every name on it, and how to cut it down without rejecting anything.
- Decide where to eat with friendsWhy a group asks where to eat and never answers it, and how to get one answer without anybody having to name a place.
- Prioritise when everything is urgentWhy the four boxes leave all your tasks in the same one, and how to put a day of urgent tasks into a real order.
- Decide what to watch, togetherWhy being handed a title does not end the argument, and how two people can agree on the kind of evening before anybody names a film.
- Decide between two job offersWhy comparing the offers keeps you stuck, and how putting your own priorities in order first makes the trade between them easy to see.
Try it with your own list
PickChill runs the same comparisons on options you add yourself. No account needed to try it.