The Art of Decision Making: How to Avoid the Common Mistakes People Make When It Comes to Decision Making

Consequences are more important than decisions

Making a decision and getting right at it seems to be a skill that only a few have in this world.

From people in charge of affairs to the ordinary person, making a decision is always a difficult one.

That, whenever we’re to make a decision, only God knows how much struggle we go through to get at it. And when we’re are at it, not all of us get things right.

And the reason is that just as being a deliberate thinker is a skill that one must learn, being a good decision maker is also a skill that you must know.

And without learning and mastering this skill, getting good at making decisions will always be difficult because anything that involves decision consists in thinking and anything that requires review requires a deliberate way of going about it.

So how do you become good at making decisions?

The psychology of decision making

To be able to make decisions and get it right requires being sane psychologically. And to be psychologically sane means embracing the problem and having the confidence that you can solve it — the first step to getting good at making decisions.

Often the reason why most people don’t get it right at making decisions is the lack of confidence in themselves. By this, they shut down the part of the brain, which helps in coming up with creative solutions.

To make significant decisions is all about creativity, and when you shut down the creative centres of your brain, what happens? Answers and options that could be available to help you out are shut as well.

Therefore, you must embrace the challenge, attach the right perception to it and have the self-belief that you can solve it and think how and get straight to it, starting from analysing the problem.

Master the art of problem-solving

To become good at making a decision means mastering the art of problem-solving, which in itself, is a skill that when you have, you can overcome every problem.

And how do you master this skill?

By analysing the problem with what they call the 5w’s and the 1h. That’s what, why, who, where, when, and how.

Which, the “what” is the problem, “why” is the reason behind the problem, “who” refers to the people involved in the situation, “where” is the location of the problem, the “when” is the time and “how”, tries to understand the problem.

These six questions of problem-solving are what I use first of all to unravel problems that arrive at my doorstep before any other item if I have to dig deeper. And they’re also what I use to come up with solutions before I take a decision.

And in trying to come up with solutions to be able to make the right decisions, I think on paper — the best way so far for me. As the mind is capable of holding one thought at a time and without writing my answers down, I’ll lose them. So in my thinking, I write every reply that comes up on a paper, which helps me be straightforward with things and also guides me to get it right with the decision I have to take. I also consider the time to make the decision and use it as a guide in my thinking as time plays a significant role in getting good at making decisions as Adams Savage put it;

“I’ve learned over decades of building that a deadline is a potent tool for problem-solving.”

Consequences are more important than decisions

The reason why most people aren’t good at making decisions and always fail at it is that whenever they have to make decisions, they fail at recognising the critical aspect of the whole thing — the consequences.

By this, whenever they make a decision, and things don’t go right, psychologically, it affects them negatively. And when this happens, they create this self-belief of not being a good decision-maker, and it goes a long way to influence them in the future if they have to make a decision.

So to become great at making decisions, you want always to consider the consequences that’ll come up after you’ve made the decision.

And how do you do this?

Also, on paper just like trying to figure out a solution. Suppose I decide a, b,c. X,y,z is what’ll happen? What’ll be the effect? Would it be something that I’d like or not?

How’ll it affect me? Would it take me to the direction I’d like to go or not? What is it going to cost me? Is the decision at all worth taking? Etc.

Asking questions like these are what’ll help you know and understand the consequences of the decision and how to go about it. And by your assessment, if the decision won’t be helpful to you, you can change it or find a new way.

And this is how I solve my problems and take decisions — always considering the consequences first.

Final thoughts

To become good at making a decision, you must understand it’s a skill that you must learn because it’s not inherent.

That, to be fair, you must first, trust and have the confidence in yourself that you’ll get it right.

Second, look at the issue critically, analyse it, weigh in the consequences that are likely to come up and find out if you can deal with it or not.

And if you can deal with it, how? —at the same time, considering time, resources and people that you’ll need before acting.

And by doing this, you’ll be on your way to becoming a good decision-maker.

So, get at it and apply them now.