ChooseSafe
Jeff Bezos's Secret: The Two-Way vs. One-Way Door Framework
August 1, 2024

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos categorizes decisions into two types: "one-way doors" and "two-way doors." This mental model is incredibly useful for reducing decision-making friction.

Two-Way Doors: These are reversible decisions. If you make a mistake, you can walk back through the door, undo the choice, and try something else. The consequences are not permanent. Most decisions in life and business are two-way doors. These should be made quickly.

One-Way Doors: These are irreversible, or very difficult and costly to reverse. Once you walk through, you're stuck with the consequences. Think of selling your company, or making a huge capital investment. These decisions should be made slowly and deliberately.

The mistake most people make is treating all decisions like one-way doors. This leads to analysis paralysis. By identifying a decision as a two-way door, you give yourself permission to act quickly and learn, knowing that you can always course-correct. ChooseSafe is all about finding the two-way door version of your scary one-way door problem.