If there’s one universal truth about life, it is that your life is the sum total of every single choice you have ever made. At each point in life, the one thing that drives all your action are decisions.
And thus, an extremely important skill for an entrepreneur happens to be the ability to make smart decisions. In business, you are always making decisions. Every single decision that is made directs the course of action that you take both in life and in business.
A lot of people struggle with decisions because there’s no formula or fixed framework. There is no such thing as a right or a wrong decision. Each one takes you on a path that is different from the other one. Decisions are circumstantial, they depend on you, the situation, and the impact you want. Multiple people when in similar situations might choose to make vastly different decisions. It all depends on the psyche of the person and their life situations. Confusion in making decisions happen when people are not sure about the parameters to consider while making decisions. They get stuck! And guess what? Not making a decision is also a decision. Hence, getting stuck and not moving in life is a choice that is in your hands!
Then what does one do to get out of a situation like this? Because even when there’s no guarantee in life, we need to make certain decisions that are inevitable. You can never make a decision with 100% surety. There will be chances where the results will not be according to your liking. But in any case, it is always wise to consider each decision carefully before committing it.
Here are 5 parameters of decision making that can help you in making an informed decision:
Is this decision taking you towards your goal?
If you are not clear about what your goal is, then you will not be able to make the appropriate decision. Ask yourself if the decision will get you a step closer to your goal or take you away from it. It doesn’t matter if it is a tough decision or not, that’s to be considered later. But if the answer is yes, go ahead and take it!
What is the impact of this decision?
Every decision has a risk. The degree of that risk depends on whether or not you will be able to handle it. Identify the risks and challenges of the decisions. But that does not mean once you identify them, you do not take the decision. The real question is, can you manage the impact of the decision that you want to make? If you are confident, depending upon your capabilities and resources, go ahead and take it!
Evaluate the pros and cons
Once you are on the track to make the decision, bring out your notebooks and judge the pros and cons, list down the advantages and disadvantages, and rate them! If your pros are more than the cons, you’re good to go! If it is the opposite, ask yourself how to convert your coins into pros to make that decision making the process a lot clearer.
Do you have the support system to help with the decision?
There are decisions that sometimes need other perspectives. We alone may not be able to gauge all of the angles of a decision. This is where we need a considerate, practical support system that can help us point towards the obvious things we might be missing out on. If your answer to this is yes, then there’s a lot more in favor of this decision that increases the confidence manifold.
Can you take action?
None of the other parameters matter if at the end of everything you are not prepared to take action. You need to ask yourself, am I confident or comfortable enough to pull off the actions needed to see this decision through? Merely making a decision is not the tough part. The difficult part is to commit to the decision and bolster it with a strong action plan that makes it a successfully taken decision.
Once these parameters fall into place, you have a much clearer road ahead in terms of decision making. Will these parameters always work? They cannot because nothing in life can be full-proof all the time. These parameters will only make sure your decisions are grounded, taken in a rational, fair manner, to put you in the direction of your goal.
Remember, decisions dictate the direction of your life, so use these parameters, to move in the direction of your goal, and not away from your goals.
Read more: The Art of Managing and Mentoring
Want to delve deeper into many such insightful topics? Karan Hasija is one of the leading business coaches in India who is also the bestselling author of the Amazon bestseller Cattle or Catalyst! He has conducted a number of professional business training programs that have aided some of Asia’s top entrepreneurs in managing and scaling their business.
