Double Goal List

Definition in One Sentence

List 25 goals you want to achieve, circle the 5 most important ones — the remaining 20 are a list of ’things to avoid at all costs.'

Core Concept

Allegedly a method by Warren Buffett: list 25 goals → circle the 5 most important → the remaining 20 are not ‘do later,’ but ’never touch,’ because they will distract you from your top 5 goals.

What Problem Does It Solve

When information is incomplete, options are numerous, or risks are unclear, it helps pull your judgment back from intuition to structured analysis.

More specifically, the Double Goal List is suitable for answering questions like: How to better understand the current situation? How to make more rational judgments and actions?

When to Use

• When problems become complex and intuitive judgments are no longer reliable.
• When the team disagrees on next steps and needs a shared analytical framework.
• When you need to turn abstract judgments into concrete actions, lists, or experiments.
• When existing practices are losing effectiveness and you need to re-examine the underlying logic.

When Not to Use

• The problem is simple, and execution is more important than analysis.
• Lacking basic facts, just spinning in concepts.
• Using the model only to prove existing conclusions, rather than to help correct judgments.

Summary

True prioritization is not about ranking everything, but about daring to say no to most things.