The cost of inaction

While people actively discuss things that may go wrong when making a decision, they tend to neglect discussing the cost of putting off a decision or not making one at all. Discussions of opportunity cost tend to be forward looking because once one commits to making a change to the status quo, it no longer seems to be worth thinking about what will happen without one.

But in reality, decisions can take a long time, so it's important to treat inaction as one of options being considered. If you're going to make a list of things that could wrong with a decision, be sure to make a list of the things that wrong without one too. Depending on the cost of inaction, it may even be worth making a potentially suboptimal decision quickly, while figuring out the right long-term solution.