Former Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin on making better decisions
Originally published on CNN Business.
August 6, 2023
In a recent interview, former Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin shared insights into his decision-making process and reflections on his extensive career in finance and public service. Drawing from his 26-year tenure at Goldman Sachs, Bob described his methodical approach using a yellow legal pad to analyze potential benefits, costs, and risks – a practice that helped him develop what he calls a "probabilistic mindset." This systematic approach to decision-making became deeply internalized and has guided him throughout his career.
While Bob's career has been marked by numerous successes, he candidly discussed lessons learned from not anticipating the housing crisis during his time at Citigroup, emphasizing the importance of maintaining a questioning, constructively skeptical mindset. Looking at the current economic landscape, Bob acknowledges the United States' fundamental strengths while expressing measured concern about present-day uncertainties. He notes that the level of economic uncertainty facing us over the next year and a half is perhaps as significant as any he's witnessed in his five-decade career. With characteristic self-awareness, Bob also reflected on his natural bias toward risk assessment, explaining how he consciously works to recognize and balance this tendency in his decision-making process.
