Real-Life Decision Making -- Solution
You go along with the boss's instructions.
You apply the pesticides as directed. You check the fish and they don't seem to be affected. You think everything is going to be OK.
On the day of the tournament, you are walking by the 10th green and you notice there is no movement in the stream. It turns out all the fish that were spawning died from the pesticides that leaked into the water from the golf greens.
The next day, the Environmental Protection Agency visits your boss. The agency decides to sue the golf course for negligence that caused the death of the fish. Your boss fires you, even though you did everything he said.
Cynthia Grant is the president of an agronomy society. She says agronomists must make quick decisions on a variety of issues and give recommendations to others on a daily basis.
"The ability to apply knowledge rapidly and make a decisions is important," she says.
"Equally important is the ability to recognize that you are never going to have all the information that you need, yet [you must] go ahead and make a reasonable decision anyway."