McDonald’s Theory (jonbell.medium.com)

I use a trick with co-workers when we’re trying to decide where to eat for lunch and no one has any ideas. I recommend McDonald’s.

An interesting thing happens. Everyone unanimously agrees that we can’t possibly go to McDonald’s, and better lunch suggestions emerge. Magic! It’s as if we’ve broken the ice with the worst possible idea, and now that the discussion has started, people suddenly get very creative. I call it the McDonald’s Theory: people are inspired to come up with good ideas to ward off bad ones.

I’m surprised at how often I refer to McDonald’s Theory. And given that it’s published on one of those platforms that tend to disappear over time, it seems prudent to keep the crux of the idea for my personal reference.