“Any time in life you're tempted to think, 'Should I do this OR that?' instead, ask yourself, 'Is there a way I can do this AND that?'”

Why it was said

Chip and Dan Heath quote Steve Cole, a research director at the non-profit HopeLab, in the first chapter of Decisive. Cole's team needed a design partner and, instead of choosing one firm, hired several to work in parallel; the Heaths use his line to introduce narrow framing, the first of their four villains.

What it actually means

The mind presents most choices as a fork, and forks are usually false. The AND question is a tool for widening the frame: the job and a review clause, the flat and a year to decide, the launch and a small pilot. Neither Cole nor the Heaths promise that both are always possible; the point is that the question costs nothing and finds a third door surprisingly often.

How to use it

1. 1When a decision arrives as 'this or that', write the sentence with AND and see what would have to be true.
2. 2Do not evaluate any option until you have at least three real ones.