Mastering the decision-making process is essential for both life and leadership. Many people are swamped with options, bothered by indecision, and agitated by analytical paralysis. However, it is possible to overcome all of this and learn to make wise selections.
You want to make the proper personal or corporate decision, and in many circumstances, the sheer number of options available causes you to question the judgments you make.
Cornell University research reveals that humans make more than 200 food-related decisions every day. Imagine how many decisions we have to make in general!
If you're having trouble making a certain decision, often second-guess yourself or experience post-decision remorse, or would like to add more tools to your decision-making arsenal, you've come to the perfect spot. Let's go into the decision-making process.
The Three P’s of the Decision Making Process
Perspective
As you already know, we make tens of thousands of decisions every day. Making good judgments is heavily influenced by how we think about them. Here are some factors to consider:
PUT THE DECISION IN CONTEXT
How critical is this decision? We sometimes worry over little decisions, such as what to eat for supper or what to dress.
Next time you're stuck on a decision, take a step back and ask yourself how important the decision is. Use a one-to-five scale, with five being a life-altering choice (job change, who to marry, or whether to have children) and one being relatively harmless with little consequences (what meal to order or whether to remark on a social media post).
If it's a four or five, you'll probably want to spend more time on it; if it's a one, you can make your decision fast and go on.
KNOW YOURSELF
Many ancient philosophers, like Aristotle and Socrates, emphasized the need of "knowing thyself". This applies to decision-making as well. We make decisions through our own perspectives and lenses, therefore it's important to understand yourself: your style, values, beliefs, fears, stories, and what works best for you.
When you have a strong sense of self, you can make numerous decisions more faster and simpler. For example, if you know your values, such as how important family is to you, it's simple to decide to miss that business function in order to attend your child's soccer game.
LEARN TO SATISFICE
In his book, The Paradox of Choice: Why More is Less, Barry Schwartz discusses the value of satisficing (yep, it's a word) rather than maximizing.
Maximizers strive to make the very best decision. They consider all options before making a decision. This frequently results in analytical paralysis, tension over the decision, and regret after the decision has been taken.
Satisficers seek for what is "good enough." They understand that there is no perfect choice and strive to make a selection that fits the majority of their wants or criteria.
Learning to satisfice rather than maximize allows you to make better, faster decisions with less regret.
ACCEPT THAT YOU WON’T ALWAYS LIKE YOUR DECISION
People frequently hesitate to make a decision because they dislike it, even if they are aware that it is the best option. And just because a decision is correct does not make it simpler to make.
This is something I frequently encounter while working with customers. They say they don't know what to do, but as we chat, I realize they do know precisely what they need to do; they simply don't like the solution. This is most evident when individuals are in a real quandary, when all choices are equally bad yet a choice is inescapable.
IDENTIFY WHICH DECISIONS TO STREAMLINE
The more decisions taken, the more energy is expended. Ultimately, this includes your capacity to make sound judgments. This is termed decision fatigue.
In one research, for instance, it was found that "patients who met a surgeon toward the end of his or her work shift were 33 percentage points less likely to be scheduled for an operation compared with those who were seen first" . The surgeons were suffering decision fatigue and were less willing to perform an operation on a patient, even if the patient required it.
Many aspects of your life can be automated so that you do not have to make decisions at all. This frees up more mental capacity for key judgments.
Consider the judgments you make on a daily basis that you could automate. Perhaps it is something you consume. Could you simplify by having eggs on toast every morning instead of making that decision?
How can you simplify or eliminate options in your life to create room for those that are most important?
Process
Pam Brown, of Singleton Hospital in Wales, developed a seven-step decision-making procedure in 2007. Many others have followed in his footsteps, creating hundreds of various variations on this identical recipe.
Here are the seven steps:
1. OUTLINE THE GOAL AND OUTCOME
What decision are you trying to make? What are you trying to accomplish with this decision? Get crystal clear on the problem and decision.
2. GATHER DATA
Here, you need to gather relevant information to make an informed decision. What do you need to know before you choose?
3. DEVELOP ALTERNATIVES
Brainstorm and identify your options. You want to make sure you have enough options that you can make a good decision, but not so many that you feel overwhelmed.
4. LIST PROS AND CONS
In this step, weigh the evidence and identify the advantages and disadvantages of each. You can also consider how likely it is that each option meets your goals.
5. MAKE THE DECISION
It’s decision time. Here, choose among alternatives based on the information you’ve collected.
6. IMMEDIATELY TAKE ACTION
You’ve picked your course of action. What’s your first step? Do it as soon as possible—no excuses!
7. LEARN AND REFLECT
Now, it’s time to review your decision making process, understand the consequences and results of your decision, and use that information to improve future decision-making.
Preference
Once you have perspective and understand the process, you can proceed using the strategy that works best for you.
LISTEN TO YOUR INNER VOICE
Trust your gut to solve the problem. Stop listening to everyone else and what they say you should do, and get clear on what you believe.
IDENTIFY THE RISK AND REWARD
Is the reward worth the risk? Is the benefit worth the cost? There will always be trade-offs in life; are they acceptable?
PHONE A FRIEND
It's difficult to make decisions on your own, so seek help! Consider a closest friend (who can listen), a coach (who can guide you through the pertinent questions to disclose your thinking), or a mentor (who has been in that circumstance previously).
Be cautious about who you involve. Part of the issue in decision-making is to avoid being persuaded too far from your own convictions. Everyone will have an opinion. Don't allow anyone persuade you differently when you know what is best for you.
USE YOUR LEARNING PREFERENCE
Are you a visual, auditory, or kinesthetic decision maker? How do you know? Consider a recent successful choice and return to the mentality you had when making it. Did you create it based on a mental image of how it would "look" (visual), internal self-talk or conversation (auditory), or a physical sensation?
TAKE ACTION
Sometimes you don't realize until you're "in it." When presented with two options, select the best choice based on the knowledge you have and what you believe is best, and then get moving. If you feel good as you move forward, you'll know you've made the proper decision.
LEVERAGE YOUR EMOTIONS
Our emotions influence our capacity to make decisions. When you are aware of and understand your emotional states, you can make better choices.
On the other hand, if you are unaware of your emotions and if they are actually related to the choice itself, you may make the incorrect decisions for the wrong reasons.
SLEEP ON IT
If you have a huge choice to make, think about it before going to bed, but don't make the decision until the next morning. Sleeping on it helps you make better selections with a clearer head.
WAIT
When we set unrealistic deadlines for ourselves, we may not be fully prepared or at the correct moment to respond.
If you have the freedom, sometimes the greatest thing you can do is wait for the correct decision to present itself. This might be as short as a few minutes or hours, or it could last months.
The Bottom Line
Making decisions might be difficult, but they don't have to be insurmountable. If you employ the tactics indicated above, you can make the decision-making process work for you in the long term. Find out what works best for you and implement it into your personal decision-making process to help you live a better life.
