Everyone struggles to make decisions and sometimes we end up making the wrong decision and end up in a grave we dug ourselves. But if you have the right mindset and guided in the right direction we can save ourselves from the pain and distress we would have caused otherwise. By just keeping ten things in mind you can go from a confused soul to a smart decision maker. Now you are taking advice but once mastered you’ll be the one others come to for advice.
1. Consequences: To begin with, ask yourself what is the consequence of the decision you’re about to make. A research published in Psychological Science suggests that imaging your future based on the decision you are about to make can drastically change the outcome. Sit down and lay out your thoughts, imagine where you would stand if you took this decision. This will help you narrow down your options.
A smart explanation from author Adrianna Jenkins, “People often have difficulty forgoing immediate temptations, like hitting the snooze button on the alarm, for the sake of later benefits. One possible reason is that people tend to consider the immediate consequences of a particular action, like getting a few more minutes of sleep, more than the later ones, like not having time for breakfast.” This should help give you a perspective of how small changes can amount to larger consequences.
2. Emotions: While making a decision most of us take our emotions as a priority and disregard practicality in the attempts to make our emotions happy. Professor of Psychology at Havard Francesca Gino has valuable advice, “Take your emotional temperature. Try to be more aware of where your emotions are coming from and how, even if seemingly irrelevant, they may be clouding your decision.”
3. Fear: One of the most common feelings among humans is fear but fear can cause negative impacts. Keeping a positive outlook is essential to estimate the challenges of your decision. Research shows that if we blindly make decisions it is more likely for us to regret it. Don’t let your fear control you but use it as a weapon to not land in a situation you would not want to be in.
4. Pros and Cons: An old school technique that is still very useful, writing down pros and cons. Weighing your options is a good way to come to a pratical conclusion.
Author Allen Klein said in his book, “With a line drawn down the middle of the page, on the left side, list the positive things about what you are debating about achieving and on the right side list any negative things that would potentially occur if you made the decision.” Once your list is ready, highlight the three most important ones on both sides, analyze them and compare to come to a final answer.
5. Values: When you are split in a decision you have to make always stay true to your values. A leadership coach, Elizabeth McCourt says, “Once someone can articulate what is most important to them, be it integrity, family, science, adventure, this will help them to have clarity. By doing so, one takes the opportunity to ‘notice’ both how they feel and how they want to process decisions. We can logically plod along and make calculated decisions, but when someone can really articulate what’s important to them as well as their situation, there will be more clarity.”
6. Anxiety: Controlling your anxiety can be hard when you’re in a difficult situation. In a simple example Joel Minden, a clinical psychologist in Chico, California says maybe one is conflicting whether to take a flight or not while traveling. He says, “Although it can be productive to consider these outcomes and then devote some time to researching the best flight options, it can be unproductive to worry so much about ‘what if’ scenarios that you end up not leaving town at all.”
7. Use Logic: A psychologist and executive director of Summerland Camps, Mike Bishop uses a technique of using logic to make an emotional decision. He was quoted saying, “A decision balance sheet is an effective tool. For example, in making a purchase decision write down all the factors that are important to you. This might be price, quality, reviews, or any relevant factor. Then, assign a number from one to ten for each item. Compare with several brands then add up the value. This way we can quantify each subjective factor and make an objective, fact-based decision.”
8. Integrity: No matter what decision you have to make as long as you know the difference between right and wrong you’re in the safe zone. Giving up your integrity for anything is a bad decision because no matter what, your integrity shapes you and your principles define you. An article in Forbes said, “Standing behind what one believes is the right decision in the face of tremendous controversy is the stuff great leaders are made of.”
The article goes on to explain, “There are many areas where compromise yields significant benefits, but your value system, your character, or your integrity should never be compromised.”
9. Ask yourself the most important question: Apart from trying to be logical the most important question you must ask yourself is what do I want. To be able to make your decision and be satisfied with it narrow it down to two options. Make sure that no matter which one you choose you will be happy. An article in Inc said, “The real reason someone might be unable to make up his mind is neither option is what he really wants.”
10. Second Opinion: After you’ve drained yourself of all the thinking power you have taking a second opinion will be useful. But not just from anyone but people who know you and want the best for you. Everyone has a different mindset and that special person in your life can give you an alternative way to look at your decisions that even you wouldn’t have thought of.
At the end of the day, everyone learns and grows at a different pace and that doesn’t mean you are bad at living. A flower may bloom late but when it does bloom it will be the most beautiful of them all. Keeping that in mind, take on life with a smile and ensure all your decisions are carefully analyzed before you jump into it.
