The book The Decision Book: Fifty models for strategic thinking introduces management models to help you make decisions in personal life. In an increasingly confusing and chaotic world, they can help in focusing on what is important. The book gives models on how to improve yourself and how to improve others ( teams ). It also gives models on how to understand yourself and understand others.
“How do I make the right decision? How can I motivate myself or my team? How can I change things? How can I work more efficiently? And on a more personal level: What do my friends reveal about me? Do I live in the here and now? What do I want?”
There are 50 ( 51 or 49 depending on if you consider black swan and Monte Carlo simulation as models ) models in the book. 13 are in how to improve yourself, 17 on how to understand yourself better, 15 on how to understand others better and only 6 on how to improve others.
How to improve yourself mainly deals with prioritisation. How to decide on number of options. Also see The One Thing: The Suprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results
How to understand yourself better models deal with number of personal things like awareness, dressing, time management, generally, why you decide what you do – your friends, your goals, etc.
How to understand others better models deal with understanding world phenomenon like pareto principal, black swan, long tail etc. It would help you decide when you are dealing with the world outside.
How to improve others models deal with improving as a team and leadership. The role playing model is also talked about in Book Review: Good Strategy Bad Strategy
This book most importantly introduces you to the world of models, of how consultants and economists try to reduce complexity in the world. You have to make models your own, and use them to reach a conclusion. As the authors say this is a workbook, not a book.