The strategies that we will be discussing in today's post have helped me to make some tough decisions. These are different strategies that I have read in business books as well as learned from previous advisers and mentors along the way.
Here are 3 decision making strategies that will help you to grow and expand.
- Decide to Accept the Worst Case Scenario
There is a tough decision to be made, and even though it needs to be made now, you procrastinate. Procrastination occurs because you are worried about what could possibly happen once that decision is made. What I do is think about the worst thing that could possibly happen, accept it, and then move on. With the worse thing in mind, you can come up with a contingency plan. If you detect any early warning signs of things going south, put your plan into action. Whatever decision is made, move forward.
- Use Available Time to Gain Understanding
When making an important decision, we may have time to decide before time is costing us money. If you have 30 days, 60 days, or even a year to make the decision, take advantage of that time. I'm not saying to keep it on the back-burner until its the week of decision time. However, I am also telling you not to stress yourself out and become emotional about the decision by rushing it. Waiting keeps your options open. You never know if different factors within your business will influence the decision. Just remember to stay on top of that decision and set reminders in your planner or phone of when that decision needs to be made. You can even put reminders in to think it over weekly until the day of your final decision.
Make One Small Decision and Move Forward
When I have a large decision to make, I break it into small action steps. This could include a phone call or talking with an employee. Even though you may have not made the large decision yet, the smaller ones keep you moving towards that larger decision. See where your action steps lead.
I hope these strategies make your decision making process quick and painless.
Michael Whitlock
703-981-5486