Managers, team leaders, and their employees constantly make decisions every day. Many of these decisions, of course, are nothing more than automatic responses to familiar situations in which they must choose between two or three options. As you advance in your career, these decisions become more critical. Decision-making is more of an art than a science. But practice and learning from our results may get us closer to achieving our decision-making goals. When you need help figuring out what to do, principles can help you making the right decisions in your career. Principled decision-making ensures that your choices support your values across various circumstances.
The principles of decision-making can support you make better choices in your life and for your organization.t. And when the stakes are high, it’s easy to get scared and anxious about making the wrong decision. However, making the right decisions in your career depends on the path of our future and the future of others.
When faced with a big or complex situation, logic, intuition, and an open mind will lead to more effective decisions. When dealing with a problem, clear your mind of opinions and prejudices, then collect the facts of the situation and learn them intuitively and logically. By understanding the cause-and-effect relationship involved in a case, you can formulate solutions that deal with the root of the problem. And by keeping an open mind, you can creatively develop alternatives when making your final decision. Thus, your success depends on your ability to make the right decisions within an appropriate time frame in your professional and personal life.
Here are some principles and guidelines for making the right decision:
1. Organize your decisions
The more decisions you make consciously and systematically, the more you will be able to align them with your goals. You know that every decision you make brings you closer or further away from your ultimate goals in life. So strategic thinking means looking at how your choices today will affect your future. Thus, when your decisions align with what’s important to you, life becomes meaningful, productive, and fulfilling.
2. Choose a good time for your decisions
Many business leaders and managers fall into a timing trap when making decisions, either making them too early or too late. Some people make decisions very quickly and without proper thinking, and others delay making decisions because they fear making a mistake or worrying about the changes that will result. As a successful business leader, choose good timing and make your decisions at the right time.
3. Balance and list your options
As a distinguished business leader, I always make good decisions and achieve balance in some of the related factors.
For example, do whatever worries you before the decision and once the decision is made, stop worrying. And since a lot of thinking postpones action, Too much work can be at the expense of intellect, finding the right balance. In addition, consider the potential risks of your decision, but once you have made the decision, take the initiative with courage. Choose the path that creates more options for you. The more options you have, the higher your chances. Essentially, you are creating opportunities for yourself.
4. Develop your intuition
No matter which way you use to make a decision, there comes a moment when you instinctively feel whether the decision is correct or not. So intuition works best when you have done the essential work and have accumulated a lot of experience in the field. Thus, develop your intuition because it is never wrong and in your best interest.
5. Follow up and review your decisions
A successful decision depends as much on motivation and skill in execution as on getting it right. Decisions are a combination of objectives, information, outcomes, and actions. There is no guarantee that any of these combinations are available or correct. While no decision is perfect, you should always keep your decision under review.
6. Bring up other points of view
A rule in decision-making is that one does not decide unless there is a disagreement. One way to ensure that extroverts refrain from crowding out other people’s opinions is to have a shared document where an idea is put forward, and people can share their thoughts and disagree asynchronously. Surround yourself with people who may have different points of view.
7. Be bold and don’t hesitate
Sometimes, fear becomes one of the hypothetical guides and justification for decision-making. But other times, you may make a more risk-averse choice that may not work for you or your organization. The bad thing you can do when you have to make a decision is to do nothing. Also, if you hesitate and don’t decide, someone else will. Be bold and brave, make the right decision, and don’t hesitate or be afraid that someone will criticize you. Another option is to surround yourself with people who may have a different level of risk tolerance than you to give you additional perspectives.
8. Consider your short-term decisions for long-term gains
Remember that we often have a better sense of what we want and care about in the short term than we do in a long time. By slightly improving your decisions in the short term, you increase your chances of being correct about the positive emotions you will experience, especially at the moment. If you are in a good mood, it will positively affect your interactions and current work, which may have long-term gains.
9. Adjust your biases and do what’s right for business
Whether you lead an organization, a team, or a project, your decisions should be about what the group is looking to achieve, not your personal goals. Of course, the right incentives must be in place, so what is appropriate and suitable for the organization must also be good for you. Resist any temptation to put your own needs above the organization. While our decisions are affected by our natural biases, learn how common biases influence the decisions you make and how to overcome them smartly.
Decision-making is more of an art than a science. But practice and learning from our results may get us closer to achieving our decision-making goals. When you need help figuring out what to do, principles can help you making the right decisions in your career. Principled decision-making ensures that your choices support your values across various circumstances. The Principles of decision-making can help you make better choices for your life and your organization.