Decision Making

DECISION MAKING

Are you decisive? They say that is a good quality in a leadership role.

Work roles aside, how DECISIVE are you where it comes to your personal life and its choices?

It is true that we all make decisions in different ways. There are those that like to know a lot of information and all the choices before choosing one. Then there are those that prefer to make an easy decision so it is done and they can move on. Sometimes decision making is difficult when you and your spouse have different styles of decision making. Some people cause themselves a lot of stress due to over analyzing, sometimes missing out because they take too long and miss the chance or just can't finalize the decision. Quick or impulsive decision makers bear the consequences of not taking time to consider outcomes, sometimes resulting in disaster.

QUESTIONS TO ASK IN ORDER TO MAKE THE RIGHT DECISION

What is more important than being DECISIVE is whether or not your decisions are the right ones for you and those around you at the time.
IMPORTANT QUESTIONS TO ASK
IN ORDER
TO MAKE WISE DECISIONS

It can be helpful to have a ist of questions to ask oneself in order to gain clarity about the best choice. Here are some examples:

What is the cost? What is the cost to my time, family, bank book, health, emotions, spirit, and so on.

What are the obvious costs of saying "yes" and saying "no"?

[Be careful not to get caught up in creating paranoid "costs" that block you uneccesarily. Paranoid thinking - what if a crazy person shows up, what if the place catches fire, what if I get sick, etc.]

Is the cost low enough that it is worth the risk?

[Low Cost - It's meal time at the restaurant, I'm hungry but can't decide what to eat. In this case, it probably doesn't matter what you choose, if the goal is merely to get sustenance. Choose quickly and you'll be eating more quickly.]

[Low Cost - If I apply to that job and don't get an interview all it will cost me was the time to email the resume.]

Is the cost or risk too high?

[High Cost - If I move the family hoping to secure a better job but don't get it, my entire family's life is uprooted and we are without an income.]

Having considered the cost or risk, am I prepared to live with those costs?

[I've quit my day job and am ready to life off savings until my business makes money.]

What are my underlying motives? Have I considered their weight in the equity of life?

[Is my motive merely to look good to others? Is my motive to get even with someone? Is it to make someone else look bad? Is my motive self-serving? Is my motive to make or save more money? Is it to get pity or attention in wrong ways? Is my motive to manipulate someone or a situation?]

Do I have enough information or am I being driven by feeling or emotions? What other information do I need to make this decision?

Have I considered how my immediate family feels about this decision?
Are my motives pure, true, honest, loving, hopeful, wise and always seeking others best?

What priorities are driving me?

[To be able to do my work more efficiently with a new truck, or to outdo my neighbour by getting a nicer one than he?]

Am I being driven by fear or insecurity?

{I'd better not ask him/her out on a date, I might get rejected.]

Have I considered the FAITH FACTOR? Have I looked at things from God's point of view? Have I consulted him? Would God approve of this?

Have I dismissed other ideas because of my own lack of faith?

THE LAST BIG QUESTION TO ASK IS:

Could I make this decision better with the assistance of a trusted friend, advisor, Professional or Life Coach?

Sometimes the hardest decisions are those that can't accurately predict the outcome because we won't know the right decision until we are at that future point. Sometimes it is just difficult to please everyone. Sometimes decisions don't feel good and are hard. [Your boss asks you to fire one of the people you are managing.]

And then there are decisions that are hard to make because it is between good and good. [This hotel or that one. This donut or that one.] Those decisions require you to take off your perfectionist cloak.

We cannot possibly control all the outcomes of our decisions. We can't contol others - the hotel management of the hotel we choose - the chef who cooks the meal we choose - those who sew the clothes we purchase. Sometimes we lose with our choice, but that is part of life.