Switch: #3 Direct the Rider and Script Critical Moves:

Direct the Rider and Script Critical Moves: Decision paralysis infects Riders at an alarming rate. Too many choices confuse the Rider and get him tugging the Elephant in too many directions at the same time. And in fact focusing on clearer, more defined directions, even in the short term, gets the ball rolling or the Elephant moving in a direction more quickly. Whether it’s multiple choices of gourmet jams in a store, multiple 401K plans to choose from, or too many choices at a speed-dating bar, it’s apparent that too many choices makes for less certainty, more ambiguity, and ultimately less action. “Choice no longer liberates, it debilitates. It might even be said to tyrannize” (p. 52). Simple rules like ‘change your oil every 3,000 miles’ or ‘get a dental exam every 6 months’ are the kinds of scripts that tend to move Riders forward. Consider what would happen if dental scripts looked like my cell phone contract… I’d have a complete set of dentures by now. The authors quote a study of how scripting only “We want you to play with your child for five minutes a day” changed child abusers into much better parents. Bottom line: Narrow the choices, script them, and watch the Rider do something (without resisting).