Bias for Action

Wikipedia defines the?bias for action?as: "the psychological phenomenon where people tend to favor action over inaction, even when there is no indication that doing so would point towards a better result".

Broadly speaking, the bias for action (or bias toward action or action bias) is a mindset that encourages people, teams, and organizations to take the initiative and make decisions quickly.

We live in a fast-paced and dynamic world where the ability to react quickly and effectively to challenges can be the difference between success and failure. This approach is rooted in the belief that taking action and making mistakes is better than waiting and missing out on an opportunity altogether.

Bias for action can sound counterintuitive because we prefer the principle-first approach, as learned at school, where we learn the fundamentals before taking any actions.

Bias for action means stopping procrastination, overthinking, and overengineering because taking action and doing something (even small) is better than waiting for the perfect plan or idea.

Bias for action means encouraging learning from mistakes, developing new skills, and promoting innovation. In other words, the bias for action encourages a trial-and-error approach with a grain of salt:

• do not experiment for the sake of it;
• take a calculated risk;
• do not make reckless decision-making;
• do not put people or organizations in danger;
• learn from mistakes and not repeat them.

In Amazon, the bias for action is a leadership principle, and it's described as follows: "Speed matters in business. Many decisions and actions are reversible and do not need extensive study. We value calculated risk-taking".

Putting it all together, the bias for action could be summarized as favoring experimentation over assumption, keeping the iteration and action smaller, and identifying the sweet spot between speed, quality, and risk.